Nigerian Newspapers
Unending agitation for new states
Despite the recent report of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review, which turned down 61 requests for additional states in the country, citing the stringent constitutional requirements for such an exercise, Nigerians have continued to clamour for more states, writes GEORGE OJI.
When the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review presented its report to the upper legislative chamber last month, one of the shocking recommendations contained in that report was the rejection of the requests for additional states in the country.
Chairman of the committee and the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, said the decision of his committee was predicated on the fact that none of the 61 requests for new states complied with the provision of section 8(1) of the 1999 constitution.
Section 8(1) states that “An act of the National Assembly for the purpose of creating a new state shall only be passed if (a) a request, supported by at least two-thirds majority of members (representing the area demanding the creation of new state) in each of the following, (i) the Senate and House of Representatives, (ii) the House of Assembly in respect of the area, is received by the National Assembly, (b) a proposal for the creation of the state is thereafter approved in a referendum by at least twothird majority of the people of the area where the demand for creation of the state originated, (c) the result of the referendum is then approved by a simple majority of all the states of the federation supported by a simple majority of members of the Houses of Assembly, and (d) the proposal is approved by a resolution passed by two-thirds majority of members of each House of the National Assembly.”
A breakdown of the report of the constitution review committee showed that out of the 61 requests for additional states received, 17 came from the South-South, nine from the South-East, while South-West accounted for 15.
This was as the North East sought for three new states; North Central, 13 and North-West, six. Of all these, the committee in its report, said: “In all, none of the requests for state creation at the close of receipt of memoranda satisfied the requirement of section 8(1) (a)(i-iii) to justify a recommendation for the next step in section 8(1)(b) namely: directing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a referendum.”
The conclusion no doubt, drew the rage of some Nigerians. It was not just the issue of state creation that attracted the ire of these Nigerians; there was also the issue of legislating role(s) for traditional rulers, which the Senate committee tactfully avoided.
At two separate media chats with Ekweremadu immediately after the presentation of the report, the issue of state creation particularly attracted serious arguments.
The question was: How come the committee did not consider it necessary to sound the alarm on time during any of the public hearings on the exercise when it noticed that the people were not following the constitutional requirements on state creation in their memoranda, so that they could retrace their steps and follow the right path? Ekweremadu’s response was to say the least, as insensitive as it was insulting to the sensibilities of Nigerians.
“It is like going into the examination hall and after failing the examination you turn round and blamed the teacher that you failed the examination because the teacher failed to give you clues to the answers.”
He added: “It is not for the teacher to do that and if for any reason you did not prepare well for the examination, the outcome will be obvious, you will fail. It was not in the place of the committee to tell them what to do.
They have their lawyers who ought to have known what to do, to have read the requirements. As they say, ignorance of the law is not an excuse.” Logical as the argument by Ekweremadu may sound, at best, that argument may be legally right but politically and morally naïve and unconvincing.
The truth of the matter is that the issue of state creation is one that is so very dear to the hearts of many Nigerians that each time it is mentioned, the people do so with so much passion, particularly people of minority nationalities.
To underscore the importance of the issue very well, it is on record that most of the lawmakers rode on the back of state creation to win their elections to the National Assembly, because they assured the people that they would make the issue an utmost priority when they get there. It is against this background that political watchers believe that the lawmakers do not just have a political responsibility but moral burden to have done more than they did with the issue of state creation.
However, while some took the decision of the Senate with studied silence, some would not just let the matter die that way, as a week after the presentation of the report, the people of Enugu State, who had submitted request for the creation of Adada State out of the present Enugu State, petitioned President Goodluck Jonathan, questioning the basis for the conclusions reached by the Senate Constitution Review Committee. The people called on the Senate to make public, its memorandum for the creation of Adada State, to let the people be the judge over the matter.
Insisting that they followed the laid down procedure in their request, the people under the aegis of Enugu State Committee and Movement for the Actualisation of Adada State, followed the petition up with a protest visit to the National Assembly with their legal team to take on the Ekweremadu- led committee.
Led by Maj. Gen. Godwin Ugokwe (rtd), the delegation met with the Deputy Senate President and during a presentation challenged him (Ekweremadu) to make public the copy of the request that was filed for the creation of Adada State to prove if it did not met the constitutional provisions.
Ugokwe, who spoke on behalf of the delegation, said they were taken aback when they read the reasons by the review committee for the rejection of the 61 applications for new states because his committee was very conscious of the requirements of section 8 of the constitution and consequently took steps to ensure that it complied with them.
He said even though they had submitted their request earlier, his committee had to review their earlier request in line with the requirement that only serving lawmakers are to sign it.
He stated that copies of the reviewed request were submitted to both the Senate committee, the House of Representatives Constitution review Committee, the Senate President David Mark, the Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Tambuwal and the Clerk of the National Assembly.
Ugokwe explained that it was following the reasons given by the committee for the mass disqualification of the requests that his committee decided to petition President Jonathan on the matter. He challenged Ekweremadu to make public the copy of the request filed by his committee to prove that Adada state creation request met the constitutional provisions.
“We are wondering why it was a blanket treatment because we submitted updated request, which was signed by the serving lawmakers from the area,” Ugokwe said, adding that they “made sure that everybody who was supposed to sign, signed.”
Responding, Ekmweremadu stated that the major snag in the actualisation of more states in the country at the moment is the difficulty posed by the constitution, which makes the process very cumbersome. He said unlike the military regime, the creation of additional states in a democracy is more tasking.
According to him, under the democratic dispensation, state creation is more of a process as compared to the military where it is just a step.
While explaining how his committee arrived at the decision to disqualify all the 61 applications for state creation, the Deputy Senate President however assured that they have not given up on state creation. He said: “What we are insisting on is that the steps for the process must be duly followed.”
He explained that the fact that new states were not announced by his committee was not the committee’s fault but because they did not meet the requirements provided for by section 8 of the constitution.
He stated that the unfortunate truth of the matter was that for a long time to come, the creation of new states is going to be very difficult because of the rigorous constitutional provisions required.
He said his committee decided to refer all the 61 requests it received on state creation to a 13-member panel of consultants made up of mainly professors of law and other experts from other fields of endeavour and that after a painstaking analysis of all the requests, the panel came up with the verdict that none of the applications met with the requirements provided for by Section 8 of the constitution for the creation of states.
Notwithstanding the position of the committee, Ekweremadu described the process for state creation as a continuum and assured the visitors that his committee was going to consider their requests.
“Any request that does not meet the requirements of section 8 of the constitution can be amended by the people and represented for consideration,” he said. In a similar move, the people of Idoma, Benue State, under the umbrella of the Idoma National Forum (INF) took their protest for the none creation of Apa State to their kinsman, Senate President, Mark in his Apo mansion, residence in Abuja. The anger of the people no doubt is not in any way misplaced.
Mark is one of the many senators who owed his repeated reelection to the Senate on the promise that he would do everything to ensure the actualisation of Apa State.
During a reception for his re-election in 2011, Mark publicly reassured the people that “If there is going to be one additional state to be created, it would be Apa State,” to which the people thunderously applauded. So, when the INF, led by Dr. Okopi Alex Momoh stormed the residence of the Senate President, the people did not mince words at their disappointment in the noncreation of Apa State.
They also expressed doubts at the reasons given by the Senate that none of the 61 requests met the conditions provided for by Section 8 of the constitution. Momoh, therefore enjoined the National Assembly to investigate and verify the claims for state creation in order to address the issue and feelings of most Nigerians.
Mark, however used the opportunity of the visit to assure Nigerians agitating for new states that all hopes are not lost yet as the issue is yet to be foreclosed by the National Assembly. He stated that even though the Senate Committee on Constitution Review in its report dismissed all the requests for new states for not meeting the constitutional requirements of the 1999 Constitution, particularly section 8, he pledged that there are still opportunities for the National Assembly to revisit the matter.
Mark disclosed that the major impediment to the creation of new states is Section 8 of the 1999 Constitution, which makes the exercise very cumbersome. He however assured that the process is being streamlined to make it less cumbersome.
His words: “I have never minced words about my position on the creation of additional states. It is not that we cannot live together with our brothers and sisters but I am a firm believer that state creation will bring more development and progress nearer to the people.
“You should continue with the agitation for state creation and work towards meeting the requirements. I am sure that when the conditions are met, states would be created. Milk may have been spilled but not fallen over. There is still a window and the National Assembly will hearken to the yearnings and aspirations of the citizenry.”
Is there any hope for agitators for state creation? Are the requisite sectors of the 1999 Constitution, as amende, easy to fulfill for states to be created? What next for the agitators for creation of new states? There and many more functions beg for another.
Time will however fall whether or not any state(s) would be created but one thing is certain, many Federal Lawmakers may find it difficult to make a return to the National Assembly in 2015, based in the electoral promise made in 2011 that new states would be created.
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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. A DisNaija.Com network.
Source: National Mirror Newspaper
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•Deploy more personnel as army chief vows to wipe out terror group
•Security beefed up at N’Assembly
Deji Elumoye and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of power, is under a massive security cordon following threats of attacks by insurgents and the increasing wave of banditry in the contiguous states of Kaduna, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger States, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.
There has been a wave of kidnappings in the outskirts of the federal capital, notably Pegi, Tuganmaje and Kuje among others, which the police have battled in recent times.
The security situation in and around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was heightened by the pronouncement of the Niger State Governor, Mr. Sani Bello, that Boko Haram fighters who he said sacked 50 villages in the state and hoisted the terror group’s flag, were about two hours drive away from the FCT.
Security has also been beefed up at the National Assembly as operatives, yesterday, thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
The deteriorating security situation nationwide prompted the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, to warn that the 2023 general election may not hold, demanding the declaration of a state of emergency as well as the convocation of a national conference.
However, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, yesterday restated the Nigerian Army’s determination to annihilate Boko Haram.
But the Governor of Katsina State, Hon. Bello Masari, cautioned against declaring a state of emergency, saying doing so isn’t the solution to combat the security challenges facing the country.
The security of the nation’s airports was also in focus yesterday as the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) said there was no threat to them.
THISDAY’s investigations showed increased presence of troops, police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) personnel and intelligence operatives at the three strategic entrances to the city notably, Keffi, Zuba and Gwagwalada.
More checkpoints were also mounted around Gwagwalada and Keffi.
THISDAY also observed increased intelligence deployment at the entrance and the borders of FCT with contiguous states.
Beyond the borders, there were more deployments and police patrols inside the city and increased intelligence deployments as well.
Security sources told THISDAY: “There are deployments here and there but they are routine. Alertness is key to a secure environment.”
It was also learnt that security agencies were involved in frenzied meetings throughout yesterday.
The meetings, coordinated by the office of the Chief of Defence Staff under the new joint operational strategy of the armed forces, were aimed at coordinating a joint response to possible threats of attack to the FCT.
“I understand the security teams have been meeting for some days now and if you look around you, you will notice that there are increasing patrols and numbers of security personnel. The threats are not been taken lightly,” a source said.
National Assembly workers, lawmakers and visitors also had a harrowing experience accessing the legislative complex due to heightened security in the area.
Security operatives thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja, impeding both human and vehicular traffic.
The Sergeant-at-arm of the National Assembly and other security agencies supervised the operations, leading to huge traffic build-up inside the complex.
Legislative staff, visitors and lawmakers were seen patiently waiting for their cars to be searched so that they could go ahead with the business of the day.
Some staff and visitors at some point got tired of waiting and were seen alighting from their cars to trek from the gate to the complex.
Meanwhile, the ONSA has said there is no threat to the nation’s airports.
A statement by the Head of Strategic Communication, Mr. Zachari Usman, said the reports of threats to the airports were an internal correspondence of security threat assessment misconstrued as security threat to the airports.
PDP Demands State of Emergency
In a related development, the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, yesterday demanded the declaration of a state of emergency, warning that the 2023 general election might not hold if the federal government failed to tackle insecurity.
He called on the federal government to summon a national conference to address the spike in insecurity.
Secondus added that the national caucus of the party will meet today to discuss the state of the nation.
Addressing members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) in Abuja, Secondus said: “We are worried Abuja is not even safe. It is no longer politics. We got alert of plots to bomb and burn down our airports.
“We urge the federal government to declare a national state of emergency in security. There is the need to call a national conference to discuss the insecurity in the country.
“There may not be any election in 2023 in Nigeria due to insecurity. This government must listen to the people. The Buhari government should call a national confab to discuss security and state of the nation. It is no longer politics. This time we are not playing politics. Let’s keep politics aside and move the nation forward.”
He said the country had been grounded, regretting that there had been no matching response from the federal government.
Secondus said in the past, terrorism in the North was confined to the North-east, but with the report of Boko Haram occupying villages in Niger State, terrorism had spread to the North-central
“Herdsmen are also menacing in the West; gunmen causing havoc in the East; and the militants in the South; all killing, looting, raping, maiming and burning down homes. The situation is bad; Nigerians all over are living in fear,” he said.
The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the problem of Nigeria was outside of the PDP headquarters, while pledging the support of the Senate to the declaration of state of emergency in security.
Abaribe said he deliberately decided not to speak on the floor of the Senate but to allow the APC senators to speak so as to avoid being accused of giving a partisan colouration to the issue of insecurity.
He stated that only electoral reforms would give victory to the opposition party in the 2023 general election and ensure a democratic defeat of the APC-led federal government.
Also, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, commended the NEC and the PDP leadership for their collective efforts at resolving the House leadership crisis.
The NEC meeting adopted the position of Secondus, calling on the federal government to convoke a national conference to discuss the state of insecurity in the country, according to a communiqué read by the National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan.
Army Chief Vows to Wipe Out Boko Haram
The army yesterday reiterated its commitment to wipe out Boko Haram.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, told reporters in Maiduguri, Borno State that Boko Haram had been defeated in many encounters and would continue to be defeated until it’s annihilated from Nigeria.
“We will take on Boko Haram decisively, and we are committed to the focus of the operations, which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria,” he said.
The COAS, who was visiting the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri for the fifth time since his appointment four months ago, said the visit was to boost the morale of the troops, reassure them and listen to any issues affecting them.
Earlier, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Farouq Yahaya, lauded the visit, which he said had continued to boost the morale of the troops.
“We are honoured, we are grateful, we are encouraged by those visits. You provided us guidance, logistics and other things we required. We are most grateful for those visits,” Yahaya said.
State of Emergency Won’t Solve Security Challenges, Says Masari
Katsina State Governor, Hon. Aminu Masari, has, however, said declaration of a state of emergency won’t solve the security challenges facing the nation.
Masari, who spoke yesterday with journalists after meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari at the State House, Abuja stated that he was against the recent call by the House of Representatives for the declaration of a state of emergency in the security sector as it would not solve the problem.
According to him, declaring a state of emergency will not achieve the desired effect as the security structure and personnel to be used to execute the emergency are already overstretched in a bid to safeguard lives and property.
Sourced From: THISDAYLIVE
Tribune Online
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 62 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 165,110. The NCDC disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Friday. “55 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria; Lagos-21, Yobe-19, Ogun-6, Akwa Ibom-3, Kaduna-2, Plateau-2, FCT-1, Rivers-1.” YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE COVID-19: Nigeria Recorded […]
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Tribune Online
Sourced From: Tribune Online
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
The people of the South East region have been urged to explore the power of negotiation and mutual settlement in the face of ongoing killings and security challenges in the zone because the east can not afford another war at present.
Stakeholders from the South-East geo-political zone made the remark on Thursday, at the unveiling of the book, “Igbo, 50 years after Biafra,” written by Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Drainage Services, Joe Igbokwe, held at Ikeja G.R.A.
Speaking at the unveiling of the book, the chairman of the occasion, Mr. Cutis Adigba,
urged the people of the South-East to learn to build bridges across the country, so that they can realise their ambition of producing the next president of Nigeria.
Adigba urged leaders from the zone to discourage the move and agitation by some youths in the South East to go to war and secede out of Nigeria.
Also read: Banditry: Disregard viral video, Niger State gov’t urges residents
He said that Igbo have always found it difficult to rule Nigeria because they refused to build bridges across the six geo-political zones that made up Nigeria.
While describing the agitation as uncalled for, Adigba noted that after two decades that Nigeria returned to civil rule, the Igbo has predominantly identified with only one political party.
He maintained that remaining in one party can not advance the cause of the people of South East and cannot make them realise their objective of producing an Igbo man as president.
He maintained that the publisher of the book, Igbokwe played politics outside his state, so that the Igbo race can be integrated with one another race.
Adigba said the failure of the Igbo to reintegrate with other ethnic nationalities politically was responsible for the retrogression of the race in Nigerian politics.
Igbokwe, also addressing guests on the occasion, maintained that the Igbo are not advancing politically because they refused to be integrated into National politics, lamenting that, despite their success in business, they are not successful in playing politics at the national level.
Corroborating Dimgba, Igbokwe noted that there was the need for the Igbo people to stand up and build bridges so that their objective of producing the next president of Nigeria could be realised.
According to him: “I have decided to raise my voice, I hope my people will hear me while trying to quell the effect of the war, our people are spoiling for another war, mayhem is being unleashed in Igbo land, and there is palpable fear.
“Those who could speak have lost their voice, mindful of the consequences of their actions, I am calling on all Igbo leaders to speak up because all actions carry consequences, consequences of the silence will be too dastardly to sustain.
“Those silently supporting the wild wind should be careful or else they hand over to their children,” he said.
Igbokwe urged those spoiling for war to jettison their plan and embrace dialogue, urging them to learn from the South West region that despite the challenges faced after the annulment of the June 12, 1993, election, they did not go to war, and the region had the opportunity of producing two of her sons for presidential position in 1999.
“You have to build bridges to become president of Nigeria, but it is unfortunate the Igbo are burning bridges.”
Speaking at the event, Chief Uche Dimgba who is the coordinator of Igbo in All Progressives Congress, APC in Lagos, described Igbokwe as “a Frank, fearless and reliable leader, who based his views on issues and stand by his opinions, and we the Igbo have confidence in him and believe he can lead us aright.”
“He is a leader we Igbo believe in and we will follow him. If he can serve all the governors produced in Lagos State since 1999, he is a better man to follow because he possesses all the experience that can be of benefit to Igbo both at home and in the diaspora.”
The post Attacks on S’East: We must explore all options of negotiation — Stakeholders urge Igbo appeared first on Vanguard News.
Sourced From: Vanguard News
The government said that no worker should stay back beyond 6:00 p.m. within premises of buildings undergoing construction.
The post Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.
Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Military, Police Ring Abuja to Forestall Boko Haram Attack
UFC: Usman gets N584m after beating Masvidal
Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings
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