Vice-President Kashim Shettima has acknowledged the potentials of the Igbo nation in driving industrial and economic revolution in Nigeria, affirming that the country’s economic prosperity lies in the hands of the ingenuity of the people.
Shettima made this known at the Light Up Nigeria Project in Enugu on Monday, signaling the federal government’s push to enhance power supply to industrial hubs in the South-east.
Organized by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), the project aims to bolster Nigeria’s power infrastructure, with the NDPHC overseeing the implementation of the National Integrated Power Project and managing a range of gas thermal electricity generation assets nationwide.
Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State, and Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State joined the event, highlighting the regional significance of the initiative.
Addressing the gathering at the Old Government Lodge in Enugu, Vice-President Shettima emphasized President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to revitalizing the South-east as Nigeria’s industrial hub.
Describing the project as a transformative journey, Shettima underscored its role in rejuvenating hope for industrialists and investors in the region.
He emphasized the pivotal link between power stability and economic growth, stating, “If there is no power, there can’t be industrialization.”
Shettima hailed the industrious spirit of the Igbo-speaking people, stating that the hope of the nation resides with them.
Prime Times quoted Shettima as saying, “Some describe the Igbo as the Nigerian Jews; geographically mobile, economically enterprising and educationally ambitious. You have the hope of the nation, right in our midst. The hope of the nation rests with Ndigbo.”