The quest for the equalisation of states among Nigeria’s component geopolitical zones would be realised under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a member of the House of Representatives has said.
Hon Amobi Ogah, who represents Isuikwuato/Umunneochi federal constituency in the National Assembly gave the assurance on Saturday February 1, 2025 in separate town hall meetings for each of the compotent parts of his constituency- Isuikwuato and Umunneochi.
He told his constituents that Tinubu was well disposed to satisfying the yearnings of the people of South East zone by creating additional state for them to bring the zone at par with the other zones.
“The good news is that Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, sincerely wants to create additional state for South East, so we can be at par with other zones,” Ogah said.
The Labour Party federal lawmaker noted that Tinubu has already demonstrated his commitment to addressing the lingering issue of marginalisation with the establishment of the South East Development Commission (SEDC).
“When he(Tinubu) said he would create the South East Development Commission, we thought it was a joke, but today we have seen it’s a reality. So, he has again shown commitment to balance the inequality in number of states”.
As presently constituted, South East is the only zone in Nigeria having only five states with South West, South South, North Central and North East composed of six states each while North West has seven states.
Ogah stated that the creation of the much needed additional state for South East would assuage the feeling of injustice and further facilitate development in the zone.
He reported to his constituents that “we have sponsored the Bill for the creation of Etiti State”, adding that “it is the only Bill that has passed second reading, and it is generally accepted by my colleagues”.
According to him, the proposed Etiti State, composed of at least two local governments taken from each of the five states of the South East zone, enjoys wide acceptance and backing among lawmakers and the people.
Ogah lamented that “South East has lost so much for having the least number of states in Nigeria”, noting that Kano alone has 44 Local Governments.
“The number of House of Representatives’ members from Kano and Kaduna alone is more than the entire South East put together,” he pointed out.
At each of the town hall meetings, Ogah presented his scorecard to his constituents, saying that he influenced the inclusion of projects worth over N4 billion for the constituency in the 2024 budget.
However, he regretted that non release of funds installed the execution of some of the projects, assuring his constituents that he would keep striving hard to actualise the projects.
The lawmaker pledged to sustain his empowerment programmes which, he said, preceded his foray into politics. He identified youth empowerment as the only way to drastically reduce crime rate.
Ogah’s received commendations for his “impactful services and quality representation”, so far in the House of Representatives, as stakeholders in both Isuikwuato and Umunneochi expressed satisfaction with his performance.
Speakers after speakers all spoke in support of the proposed Etiti State and encouraged their representative to continue in his efforts to ensure the creation of the state.
Bishop of Okigwe Methodist Diocese, Bishop Livinus Bereonwu Onugha, argued that for the sake of equity, Etiti State should be the sixth state for the South East before any other proposal could be considered.
In his remark, President General of Nneato Community, Chief George Okafor, stated that Etiti State would be economically as oil has already been discovered by Shell at Nneato.