It is not surprising that many entities and groups are coming up with demands for states to be created for them. In a system as ours where state creation is seen as a means of extending development to hitherto neglected units and as a forum for people with claims of marginalisation to rediscover and assert themselves, such agitations are expected. The rising number of demands for states different from the existing ones, is therefore not strange. But few of these agitations deserve attention as the proposed Anioma State.
The demand for Anioma state is of historical essence and contemporary imperative. That was the point the Senator representing Delta North, Ned Nwoko made the other day in explaining that the demand for the creation of Anioma State is not a political agenda but a matter of equity, justice and cultural identity.
It is a generational dream tied to cultural survival and self-determination. True to Nwoko’s explanation, the agitation dates back to the Mid-Western era with the likes of the then Premier of the region, Dr. Dennis Osadebay leading the struggle. In doing so, the Premier took a cue from his forefathers who had traces of common ancestry and lineage, language, food and social life, among the constituent communities. Osadebay, in fact, coined the word “Anioma” (the good land or land of the good) to encompass the Aniocha, Ndokwa, Ika and the Oshimili people of the old Midwest state, currently under Delta.
The late Asagba of Asaba, one of the most revered Nigerian academic and dignified Royal Father, Prof. Chike Edozien, was equally very vocal advocate of Anioma state. So also, was the late Dr. Ralph Uwechue, renowned diplomat and erstwhile President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo; Senator Nosike Ikpo; Chief Humphrey Iwerebor, Prof B.I.C Ijeomah and Dr Emmanuel Efeizomor.
Anioma state, a hope in the horizon
Nwoko is building on these solid foundations and extending the frontiers of the agitation by sponsoring a bill to that effect. The bill was read for the first time in the Senate, on 1 July 2024. It seeks, among other things, to alter three sections of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), to delete the word 36, replacing it with 37 to accommodate Anioma state. Specifically, the bill for the proposed Anioma State aims to recognize the nine local government councils that cover Delta North. They are Aniocha North, Aniocha South, Ika North-East, Ika South, Ndokwa East, Ndokwa West, Oshimili North, Oshimili South and Ukwuani, with Asaba as state capital designate.
The most compelling aspect of the argument by the senator is the proposal that Anioma be made part of the South East. That will mean giving voices to indigenes seeking a reunification with their kith and kin spread across the country due to migration, trade and the civil war, a re-affirmation of socio-cultural identity and a solid base for generational identity and self-pride. The present arrangement, which leaves Anioma Igbo fragmented, is not in the best interest of the people.
It is also a fact that the South East has the least number of states among the six geopolitical zones of the country. Among the six geo-political zones in the country, four – the North East, South West, South-South, North Central, have six states, each. North West has seven. Only the South East has five states – the least in the configuration, not on account of inferior or non-productive population but essentially because of the arrangement in the country that has been skewed against the people. As a corollary to the deficit in the number of states in the region, out of the 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the country, the South East has 95 councils, the least compared to other zones. North West has the largest number of local government areas with 186; North Central Zone has 114, while the South-South zone, has 125.
The lopsidedness in the LGA distribution, places the South East at serious disadvantage, given that many appointments and openings in the country are made based on states and number of councils in them. Whether recruitment into the military, admission in higher institutions, employment in the public service, Igbo are the least. There are other implications. In the legislature, the zone is deprived of a whole State legislative assembly, inferior number in the House of Representatives, and the Senate.
Efforts to redress the situation through the 2014 National Conference of the then President Goodluck Jonathan in the recommendation for creation of new states to ensure that the South East got equal number of states with the other five zones, were thwarted by the Muhammadu Buhari administration in not implementing the proposal. The ongoing constitution review, therefore, provides another opportunity to right the wrongs, if justice and fair play are applied.
With Anioma State, Nigeria will also be inching closer to closing the ugly chapters of the 1967-1970 civil war. Documents on the Asaba Massacre of October 1967 remain a reminder of the depth and magnitude of pains experienced by the Igbo in the crisis. Incidentally, the areas that fall into the proposed Anioma state, bore the brunt, almost entirely.
Matters are not helped by the General Yakubu Gowon administration’s proclamation of Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (3Rs), that were largely kept in beach by the federal government. There is in fact, no how Nigeria can claim to have ended the war against the Igbo when indices of injustice, inequity and other tendencies the gave rise to the field hostilities, still prevail.
Thus, the pains and trauma of the war, resonate 55 years after. Creation of Anioma State will go a long way in healing those wounds and giving the South East a sense of belonging. That will count as huge credit for the President Bola Tinubu administration.
The demand is not based on mere sentiments or historical recollections. The Anioma region has everything going for it, including population size of 1.5 million – more than the population of Equatorial Guinea, that has a population of just 1.44 million people. The proposed Anioma state also has a landmass of 6,300 Square Kilometres – three times the size of Mauritius, and almost twice the landmass of Cape Verde. Besides, Anioma is blessed with arable land, huge gas deposits and some of the most productive technocrats and corporate giants in Nigeria. With the likes of Okonjo-Iwealas, the Tony Elumelus, the Nduka Obiagbenas, the Jim Ovias, the Achuzia, the Odogwus, the Kachikwus, the Okogwus , the Uwechues, the Pat Utomis, the Edoziens and a host of other very brilliant and highly successful individuals that have the torch of progress as evidence of the value of human capital, Anioma State can hold its own any time, any day.
It is gladdening that Senator Nwoko is garnering the support of his fellow lawmakers and other fair-minded Nigerians in the agitation. His argument is not just compelling but strategic. He deserves commendation. That is why the few voices of dissent against the demand, especially from the Delta axis, should think again and join in the crusade.
