- Bill to create Etiti State was introduced on the floor of the House of Representatives and subsequently passed for first reading
- Okey Ezea of Enugu North also sponsored a bill to create Adada state
- Experts, stakeholders worry over inconsistency in the quest, say it may threaten creation of additional state in the zone
Recently, a bill to create Etiti State was introduced on the floor of the House of Representatives and subsequently passed for first reading.
WITHIN NIGERIA gathered that the bill, sponsored by Amobi Ogah (LP, Abia), Miriam Onuoha (APC, Imo), Kama Nkemkama (LP, Ebonyi), Chinwe Nnabuife (YPP, Anambra), and Anayo Onwuegbu (LP, Enugu), was introduced on Tuesday, July 1, 2024 during plenary.
The constitution alteration bill seeks to carve out a new state from the five South-east states of Abia, Enugu, Anambra, Ebonyi, and Imo.
However, according to the synopsis of the bill, it seeks to alter three sections of the 1999 constitution. First, to delete the word 36 and replace it with the word 37. Secondly, to insert the word Etiti immediately after Enugu in the list of states contained in the Constitution.
It also seeks to alter the listing of local governments according to states and transfer the 11 local government areas from their current states to the new state.
The local governments to be affected are Isuikwuato and Umu-Nneochi (Abia), Orumba North and Orumba South (Anambra), Ivo and Ohaozara (Ebonyi), Aninri, Agwu and Oji River (Enugu), as well as Okigwe and Onuimo (Imo).
Nevertheless, on the same day, a similar bill was being presented on the floor of Senate by Senator Okey Ezea (LP) of Enugu North Senatorial District.
However, what is different is that Sen. Ezea was pushing for the creation of Adada state from the present Enugu state.
The bill, which has been cited as the “Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Alteration) Bill, 2024 (SB. 482)”, seeks to amend Section 3(1) and the First Schedule, Part 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to provide for the creation of Adada State to bring the number of South-East states to six (6); that would enable the South-East to be at par with the other geopolitical
zones of the country.
Recall that few days ago, there was a similar bill seeking to create a new state in the South-east. The bill, sponsored by Ikenga Ugochinyere, aimed to create Orlu State from Abia, Imo, and Anambra State.
Mr Ugochinyere’s bill was said to have polarised the South-east caucus in the House, with some members openly opposed to the proposed Orlu State.
History of state creation in Nigeria
The struggle for the creation of states in Nigeria is as old as Nigeria itself. When Nigeria attained independence from colonial rule in 1960, it was a federal state with three regions. These were the Eastern, Northern, and Western regions. There were also provinces which served as a legacy of colonial rule.
These were later abolished in 1976. 1963-1967 In 1963, a new region was created, bringing the total to four. The new region was known as the Mid-Western Region and was created from the Western Region. 1967-1976 In 1967, the country’s military regime replaced the four regions with 12 states.
Between 1967 and 1970, the former Eastern Region attempted to secede from the rest of Nigeria, resulting in the infamous Biafran Civil War. The states created in 1967 resulted from General Yakubu Gowon’s rise to power via a coup d’état.
Seven additional states were created in 1976, bringing the total to 19. The 19 states of Nigeria in 1976 included the Federal Capital Territory, created from Niger State.
In 1987, two more states (Akwa Ibom and Katsina) were created, bringing the total to 21. This was done under the military rule of General Ibrahim Babangida.
However, on 27 August 1991, the number of states in Nigeria increased to thirty as General Babangida thought it fit to create another nine states, bringing the total to 30.
In 1993 when General Sani Abacha came into power, the government was under immense pressure to create additional states. Under recommendation from the National Constitutional Conference (NCC), the reigning military regime decided to create six more states.
This was done in October 1996, bringing the total to 36 states.
Demand for creation of Adada state
Findings by WITHIN NIGERIA showed that Adada state is the oldest yet to be realized demand for creation in Nigeria. It was first made in 1983 by Yunusa Kaltungo, a Federal lawmaker from Bauchi State, as a result of what he perceived as imbalances in state creation in the country, especially in the Southeast.
Then in 1996, the same request was represented to the Mbanefo Panel on State and Local Government Creation and Boundary Adjustment. However for obvious reasons, Ebonyi State was created, making states in the Southeast five.
Since then, the demand for Adada state creation has continued to rebound in the political spectrum of the country. It has been seen as a subject of alleged marginalization. It is for this that many notable people from the zone are of the opinion that the creation of Adada state is not only overdue but will go a long way in addressing the alleged imbalance in the zones.
Why the demand for additional state from South East
Argument by the South East zone people is that zone remains the only Nigeria geopolitical zone with the smallest number of states.
In South West geopolitical zone, it was adorned with six states, comprising of Lagos, Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti and Osun. In South South, we have six states; Delta, Edo, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwaibom and Cross River states. In South East, there are five states which include,
Anambra, Enugu, Abia, Imo and Ebonyi states. North Central has six states; Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger and Plateau and also FCT, Abuja. North East equally six states; Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe.
Finally North West has seven states which include; Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina, Kano, Kaduna and Jigawa states.
In any case, findings by our reporter showed that the proposed Adada state is comprised of seven local government areas; Isi-Uzo, Udenu, Igbo-Etiti, Igbo-Eze South, Igbo-Eze North, Nsukka and Uzo-Uwani.
Reactions of the people of the zone
In reaction to Ugochinyere’s draft bill, Peter Uzokwe, who represents Nnewi North/Nnewi South/Ekwusigo federal constituency of Anambra State, recently told journalists that Mr Ugochinyere did not consult the caucus before introducing the bill.
According to Hon. Uzokwe, “what my colleague did was to take the Imo map and the Anambra map and start carving out places as he pleases. He did it just to embarrass me because this is my local government. Could he have done that to Nnewi? He dare not.
“I would have loved him to carve out Nnewi. State creation is a permanent thing that can bring war, that can bring border issues. Tomorrow, you will hear that Igbos are killing themselves because they don’t have blood ties,” Mr Uzokwe said during the interview.
Reacting to the current development, Dr. Ambrose Igboke told WITHIN NIGERIA that it is still too early to predict what will happen in the long run.
“I think it is too early to predict how it will finally pan out. We have to see how it goes. The South East is once more, singing discordant tunes. While Senator Ezea is pushing for Adada State, Hon. Ugochinyere is rallying support for Orlu state while some are advocating for Etiti state.
“This cacophony makes Ndigbo a laughing stock before other Nigerians. Why should Hon. Ugochinyere and others canvas for other regions within South East to be a state when the issue of Adada state has been in the front burner for more than 40 years?
“The place referred to Adada state is, perhaps the only entity that has remained intact since the Old Anambra – Imo state. It is the only monolithic bloc that has been denied a state or even to be split into different Senatorial districts.”
Dr. Igboke, an Enugu-based public affairs analyst urged the other people in the zone to support Adada state creation.
“Other people from the South East should support the creation of Adada state because that is what is fair, just and equitable.”
In a similar development, the Publicity Secretary Labour Party, Enugu state, Barr. Onuora Odo told WITHIN NIGERIA that the discordant tunes by the South East law makers will definitely lead to the delay of the state creation in the zone.
“First and foremost, I want to commend Senator Okey Ezea for taking up the gauntlet in introducing the bill. There is no disputing the fact that creation of Adada State is long overdue. The impact of additional state in the South East region is going to be enormous. If created, it’s going to balance representation in the National Assembly. It will attract developments to the region because more constituency projects would begin to come. Also, more job opportunities would open. Similarly, it would attract foreign investors and improve developments.
“On a final note, creation of Adada State would pave way for administrative efficiency.
“The push for the creation of Orlu State as championed by Ikenga Ugochinye is definitely going to throw spanner on the wheel of the bill introduced by our amiable and ebullient Senator Okey Ezea.
“However, in terms of first in time, the call for the creation of Adada State comes first as it dates back to 1983. For equity and fairness, Ikenga and his team should put on hold their call and lend their voice for the creation of Adada.”