National Conference approves rotation of presidency between North, South

Confab also recommended the creation of 18 new states in the country

The National Conference on Thursday adopted a recommendation of its Committee on Political Restructuring and Forms of Government for the creation of 18 new states in the country, as well as for the rotation of the office of the president.

It specifically agreed that in the spirit of reconciliation, equity and justice, an additional state should be created for the South East zone, which currently has only five states.

If the Federal Government accepts the recommendation, the country will have 54 states with nine in each of the six zones.

The Conference also accepted the recommendation for the rotation of the presidency between the North and South and among the six geo-political zones while the governorship seat should be rotated among the senatorial districts in each state.

The Committee co-chaired by Ike Nwachukwu and Mohammed Kumalia had presented its report on Monday.

They said the subject of state creation had remained a huge political issue in Nigeria.

“The Committee examined the reports of the National Political Reform Conference and the report of the Presidential Committee on Review of outstanding issues from recent Constitutional Conferences 2012 (the Belgore Report) and after wide consultations and extensive deliberations and in the interest of equity, justices and fairness,” they added.

Some of the proposed states approved by the Confab are Apa from Benue State, kainji from Kebbi, Katagum from Bauchi, Savannah from Borno, Amana from Adamawa, Gurara from Kaduna, Ghari from Kano, Etiti from South East, Aba from Abia, Adada from Enugu and Njaba-Anim from Anambra and Imo.

The others are Anioma from Delta State, Orashi from Rivers State, Ogoja from Cross River State, IJebu from Ogun State and New Oyo State from the present Oyo State.

The Conference is to later determine the names of the remaining two other states and their capitals, which are to be created in the South-South and South West zones.

The Conference, however, noted that any new states to be created should be economically viable or potentially viable and should have human, natural and material resources. It also resolved that that a new state should have minimum population of one million persons.

It rejected an amendment that said the National Assembly by resolution passed by a simple majority or membership should approve the merger of states and that the merged states shall exist as a region.

The Conference agreed that there should principle of zoning and rotation of elective offices at the federal and state levels on the basis of excellence, equity, gender justice and fairness.

The Committee had recommended that the Electoral Act and the Constitution of Political Parties should provide Principle of zoning / rotation of elective offices at the federal and state levels on the basis of equity, justice and fairness

The Conference rejected a single term of six years and a unicameral legislature for the country.

The Conference accepted a recommendation that there should be quarterly question time for the President and question time for ministers at the legislature to enhance accountability.

Meanwhile, a Civil Society Organisation delegate, Femi Falana, opposed the adoption for the creation of 18 new states.

“Having regard to the several resolutions of the National Conference on the need to reduce the costs of governance, I found the recommendation for the creation of additional 18 states rather contradictory,” he told journalists after the plenary session.

The conference resolutions are not automatic laws and would only be submitted to the president, who could then propose them as bills to the National Assembly.

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  • eddie

    We in the south south, welcome this development. The confab is chatting a good way forward for this country. Will however advice in the intrest of equity and justice that an additional state be created for the niger delta as they are the goose that lay the golden egg (from the report above, I think this is being adressed). You guys are doing a great job. Hope Nigeria comes out the better for it.

  • Ogoni KingdomNation

    hahahahahahaha, national conference recommends one million people as one
    important or population requirement for groups seeking state creation.
    it also recommended some land and water mass…na waoh, nigeria! how
    many of the current states have considerable land and water mass; and
    how many million were the different groups which currently have states
    in the country; how many million people are in the new southeast state
    recommended; did the conference know the actual and not fictitious
    figure before recommending? well, assuming these recommendations will
    become law. what most nigerians fail
    to understand (or many do and overlook) is that the southeast
    Geo-political zone is mainly igbo people or ethnic group like the west
    is purely yoruba ethnic group. the north isn’t mainly hausa-fulani
    ethnic group despite the fact that it’s more than 6 states. the north,
    as a Geo-political zone consist of many ethnic groups like south-south.
    therefore, the claim that creating additional state for the southeast
    to making 6 will bring parity to the zone since other zone have 6 states
    each or more is childish and the exhibition and protection of falsehood
    like many things nigerian, including the conference and its
    recommendations which are tele-guided by its conveners micro-managed by
    these tripartite ethnic groups through goodluck jonathan. look at it
    this way. when 6 states are created for the igbo alone like 6 for the
    yoruba and about 10 for hausa fulani alone (there are about 19 states
    altogether in the north), while south-south comprising many ethnic
    groups also has 6, this isn’t parity or justice quest. rather disparity
    and injustice is herein engendered, especially where many ethnic groups
    in the south-south zone which are viable and qualify to have states
    have been conspicuously denied. And more so where oil money from the
    south-south futes most of the bills
    running these multiple states created for single ethnic groups. as said
    previously, this conference, which purports to be creating some balance
    in attempt to please every region, zone or ethnic group hasn’t really
    done anything which represent any balance. rather it’s continued as
    expected or predicted to make recommendations that further marginalize,
    oppress and exploit the niger delta and the poor of the country, thus a
    failure as envisaged. imagine a conference which can’t consider
    increasing minimum wage for the working poor, whether it will become law
    or not. yet politicians and their business friends and family members
    smile with hundred of thousands or millions to the banks monthly, and
    the millions and billions they steal aren’t included. the answer to
    these lopsided and cheating recommendations is the scrapping of these
    states which are used mostly to steal oil money, and return to regional
    govt which will permit regions to create as many or few states they can
    run with their mobilized or generated resources and contribute to the
    center. regional govt will break the national laziness, greed and
    criminality that reverberates everywhere in the country; it will bring
    competition, collaboration hence innovation, growth and success.
    meanwhile, what i still can’t understand is why those who call
    themselves nigerians particularly the so-called conferees have no real
    sense of fairness and justice, thus close their eyes to everything
    righteous and equilibrium to open up the country for deeper crisis and
    conflicts ?
    By Ben Ikari.

    • gregorymanne

      Population of people – both at home and abroad – in one large local government area alone of the southeast is more than the population of all the Ogoni put together. Do the arithmetic – that is, if you have the mental capacity to do that, instead of, as usual, aiming to shoot yourselves on the feet.

  • orjiakors

    For the second time in less than ten years, a sixth state has been approved by Nigerians for the southeast area. What stopped the implementation before now? Location of the new state? Not that.
    Easy. Southeast zone is from old East Central state which was divided into Imo and Anambra states; latter, Imo state was divided into present Imo and Abia states when Anambra state was divided into Enugu and present Anambra states.
    Finally, the fifth state in the southeast – Ebonyi – was carved from Abia and Enugu states. So even a man from the moon will tell that a sixth state has to be carved from Anambra and Imo states – proposed Anim state; or from Imo state – proposed Njaba state.

  • Better Life

    mad people, what’s happening now? but north are killing igbos because a south south person is ruling Nigeria. what a deception.

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