A group, The South East Patriots (SEP), has called on South East governors, business leaders and political stakeholders to urgently organise regional gas infrastructure partnership to power industrialisation.

National Coordinator of South East Patriots, Sir Obunike C. Ohaegbu, Ezesinachi Ukpor, made the call in an “Open Letter to South East Governors, Business Leaders and Political Stakeholders on the Urgent Need for a South East Regional Gas Infrastructure Partnership“.

The letter, addressed to all governors, captains of industry, and political leaders from South East, was made available to Diaspora Digital Media (DDM).

In the letter date October 17, 2025, Sir Ohaegbu regretted that Igbos have driven the engines of commerce across Nigeria, yet the region is left without critical infrastructure that powers true industrialisation — affordable gas energy.

He stated: “The South-East stands at a defining moment in our economic and political history.

“For too long, our people have driven the engines of commerce across Nigeria, yet our homeland remains without the critical infrastructure that powers true industrialisation — affordable gas energy.

“This letter is a clarion call for decisive partnership and action.

“The future will not wait for those who negotiate endlessly; it will reward those who build deliberately.”

South East Patriots National Coordinator, Sir Obunike C. Ohaegbu

1. The Irreducible Minimum: Gas Infrastructure for the South East

He stated as follows: “The most urgent infrastructure requirement of the South East is a regional gas distribution network linking our major industrial cities — Aba, Nnewi, Onitsha, Awka, Enugu, Abakaliki, and Owerri.

“We sit on the doorstep of abundant gas reserves in Owaza, Imo River, and OML-17, yet our industries still run on diesel.

“A simple 245-kilometre medium-pressure pipeline can unlock an industrial renaissance in our region — lowering energy costs by up to 50%, attracting new factories, and restoring competitiveness.

“This project is the irreducible minimum demand of the South-East in the current political era.”

2. The Shortest and Most Feasible Route

Ohaegbu noted that the Aba–Nnewi–Onitsha corridor is the shortest and cheapest route to extend gas supply across the region.

“Constructed in three phases — (1) Aba–Nnewi–Onitsha, (2) Aba–Owerri, (3) Onitsha–Awka–Enugu–Abakaliki) — the entire project would cost an estimated USD 350 million, modest by national standards.

“Its benefits will be immediate: cleaner power, cheaper production, more jobs, and the transformation of the South-East into Nigeria’s manufacturing hub,” he stated.

3. A Call for Public-Private Partnership

Ohaegbu called for a Regional Public-Private Gas Partnership (RPPGP) to achieve the project involving:

• The Governments of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo States;
• Private sector anchors such as Innoson, Ibeto, Cutix, Chicason, Emzor, Coscharis, and Orange Drugs; and
• Technical partners including NNPC Gas Infrastructure Company (NGIC) and Shell Nigeria Gas (SNG).

“Each state can provide land and rights-of-way, while industries commit investment and long-term offtake guarantees.

“This model worked in Aba — it can work for the whole South-East, he observed.

4. Challenge to Political Leaders and Supporters of the Current Administration

Obunike also called on South East “sons and daughters” that supported President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2023 to draw his attention.

“SEP now challenges them to demonstrate that support in concrete terms by ensuring that the South East Gas Expansion Project is included and funded under the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas initiative.

“True political participation is measured not by proximity to power, but by the results we bring home.

“If this administration genuinely values inclusivity, it must deliver this project as a national economic imperative,” he insists.

5. Development Partners and Financing Opportunities

Ezesinachi said that development finance institutions are prepared to fund this project once local commitment is proven.

The institutions include:

1. Afreximbank, through its regional infrastructure facility;
2. African Development Bank (AfDB) under the New Deal on Energy for Africa;
3. Bank of Industry (BOI) for gas-to-industry financing; and,
4. Sovereign Green Fund and Climate Investment Platform (CIP) for clean-energy corridors.

He added that “what is required is early governor–industry coordination to present a unified regional proposal and feasibility document”.

6. The Time to Act Is Now

Buttressing the urgency of the project, Ezesinachi stated: “Every other region in Nigeria has used gas infrastructure to expand industry — the South South through LNG, the South West through gas-to-power, and the North through transmission corridors.

“If we fail to act now, we risk permanent economic marginalisation.

“The South-East must take destiny into its own hands through unity of purpose and strategic collaboration between government, industry, and our political leaders at the federal level.”

7. SEP’s Vision and Political Philosophy

The South East Patriots envisioned the South-East as the economic hub of Nigeria, driven by deliberate political participation and evidence-based regional development.

“We are non-partisan but fiercely patriotic.

“Our commitment is to Equity, Energy, and Enterprise — and to ensuring that no national government again overlooks the industrial potential of our people,” the statement said.

8. Political Accountability and Continuity

Ohaegbu recalled that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, during consultations with South East leaders in 2022, explicitly committed to supporting the development of this regional gas infrastructure as part of his industrial revival plan.

The commitment was documented as a pledge to the people of the South East.

“Those who opposed the Atiku/Obi platform and aligned with other political candidates must now speak clearly to the South-East on where their candidate stands on this critical infrastructure project.

“Our people deserve to know who among Nigeria’s political leaders genuinely supports energy equity and regional development — and who does not,” he stressed.

He concluded by emphasising that the destiny of the South-East will not be written in promises but in pipelines.

“We have the opportunity — and the obligation — to connect our region to the national gas grid and power the next century of Igbo enterprise.

“Let history record that this generation rose above party lines to build what our children will inherit with pride,” he added.