Anosike Unveils Blueprint to Make S’East United Regional Force

Dr. Kelechi Anosike, the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) governorship candidate for Abia State, has outlined a blueprint for transforming Nigeria's South-east region into a united economic and political force through deliberate institutional reforms.

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And the questions our children will ask us years after, ‘what did you do when this happened’, may be that we played our part and did our best to ensure that our region is strengthened, institutions are energised, and we are able to build our individual entrepreneurial success into a collective regional bargaining power.

Speaking at the South East Zonal Summit of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) in Enugu, Anosike argued that the region's future hinges more on robust institutions, professional management, and a culture of accountability than on political maneuvering. He stressed the importance of strengthening institutions to energize the region and build collective bargaining power from individual entrepreneurial successes.

Anosike highlighted that institutions outlive political cycles and that a region's performance is intrinsically linked to the quality of its bureaucracy. He identified significant challenges within the South-east civil service, including weak digital systems, bureaucratic delays, a low performance culture, and a lack of measurable outcomes.

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Institutions outlive elections, and that no region can outperform the quality of its bureaucracy.

To address these issues, the public policy expert proposed "Performance Governance," a system where public institutions and political appointees are evaluated based on clear metrics. He urged NIM to lead this initiative by producing an annual "South-east Governance Report Card" to assess governors on key areas like ease of doing business, infrastructure development, fiscal responsibility, security innovation, and digital governance. Anosike believes such a scorecard would foster healthy competition among states.

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Most of them get to work, they don’t know what to do. Who is training them?

Furthermore, Anosike called on NIM to serve as the South-east's governance think tank, providing policy direction and training for government officials. He also addressed "entrepreneurship deficits" in the region, particularly the large informal sector where artisans operate outside regulatory frameworks, costing the economy billions annually. If elected, he plans to establish the Abia State Informal Sector Development and Regulatory Agency (ASISDRA) to certify artisans through refresher courses, aiming to enhance their value and earning potential on the international market, citing Nigeria's missed opportunities due to a lack of artisan certification.

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Money follows value. With certification, they gain value and can price their services competitively.