The National Assembly Joint Committee on Constitution Review has unanimously endorsed the request for the creation of an additional State in the South East geopolitical zone.
The South East is the only zone with five States while others have six States with the exception of the North West with seven States.
The lawmakers endorsed the request at a two-day retreat in Lagos, where the committee reviewed 55 proposals for state creation across the country.
The session, chaired by the Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, and co-chaired by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Okezie Kalu, deliberated extensively on the matter.
Kalu and other lawmakers from the South East have consistently championed the demand for an additional state for the region, reiterated that the request was anchored on principles of equity, justice, and fairness.
Members of the Committee who unanimously approved the request later took turns to deliberate on the issue, speaking in favour of granting the South East an additional state.
Following the deliberations, Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) moved a motion for the creation of the new state, which was seconded by Hon. Ibrahim Isiaka (Ifo/Ewekoro, Ogun State).
The motion received the unanimous support of committee members and was adopted.
In a related development, the joint committee also established a subcommittee to further consider the creation of additional states and local government areas across all six geopolitical zones, noting that a total of 278 proposals were submitted for review.
Jibrin urged members to rally support among their colleagues at the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly to ensure the resolutions sail through during voting.
“We need to strengthen what we have started so that all parts of the country will key into this process,” Jibrin said.
“By the time we get to the actual voting, we should already have the buy-in of all stakeholders—from both chambers and the State Houses of Assembly.”
(Nation)
