A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Mohammed Ndarani Mohammed, has described the call for the creation of Edu State out of Niger State as apt and in line with the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Ndarani, who backed the move to create additional states in Nigeria noted that the agitation has been a long-standing one, with proponents arguing that it would promote effective governance and development in the country.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria has therefore supported the memo submitted to the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, signed by the Royal Fathers, elected representatives in the Senate, House of Representatives, State House of Assembly, Local Government Chairmen, and all Councillors from Niger State.
According to Ndarani, the enormous natural resources and land mass in Niger State were the reason behind the desire for the creation of Edu State.
He said, “Niger State’s geographical mass is unquestionably more than that of the entire Southeast and equal to that of the Southwest.
“Niger remains the only state from which a new state has not been created.
“It is vast and has a variety of solid minerals. The proposed Edu state is a prospective oil-producing state. It will be a viable and developed state with a capital in Bida.
“In conclusion, if Edu State is created, it will serve the better interest of Nupes, who were long marginalised in their respective states, namely, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, and FCT. It will also serve as President Tinubu Renewed Hope Agenda. God bless Nigeria.
Various groups require Edu from the present Niger, Kogi, and Kwara states.
State creation in Nigeria dates back to 1967, when the then-head of state, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, created 12 states out of the four existing regions. His successor, Murtala Mohammed, created an additional seven states in 1976, which brought the total number to 19.
General Ibrahim Babangida, who was Nigerian head of state between 1985 and 1993, created 11 more states; two in 1987 and nine in 1991, which brought the number of states in the country to 30 until 1996, when another military ruler, the late General Sani Abacha, added six states, bringing the number to 36 states that are currently in existence.
Also under the Abacha regime, Nigeria was divided into six geopolitical zones. Out of these, the northwest has seven states; the northeast, north-central, and south-south comprise six states each, while the southeast consists of only five states.
Though history has shown that state creation had been done only by the military government, demands and even recommendations have been made at different times, especially in the last 24 years since the return to democratic rule in 1999 for more states to be created.
