Daily Independent (Lagos)
Emmanuel Nzomiwu
24 November 2008
Enugu — South East Governors plan to meet this week in Enugu to agree on a common position on the creation of an additional state in the zone.
There are five states in the region, and the agitation is for at least one new state, so as to bring it at par with zones which have six.
The meeting of the South East Governors Forum (SEGF) coincides with the election of a new leadership for the Ohanaeze Ndigbo.
SEGF Chairman, Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, told reporters about the planned gathering last week, which is intended to seal up the cracks over state creation.
The Governors of Enugu and Ebonyi State want an Adada State carved out of Enugu State, their counterparts in Abia and Imo prefer Aba to be created from Abia and Urashi from Imo.
A source said on Sunday that Obi has pitched his tent with Ohanaeze on the demand for Etiti/Equity State carved out of all the existing five states.
However, expectations are high that the Governors will harmonise the divergent views and present a common position to the Constitution Review Committee of the National Assembly headed by Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.
The canvassers for Adada state have urged Ekweremadu and other members of the Committee to stick to the guidelines spelt out by Senate President, David Mark, who said the exercise should correct the wrongs of the past.
They were reacting to Mark's statement at the inauguration of the Committee last Thursday that state creation, council administration, and federalism are among the areas that deserve urgent attention.
Leader of Adada State Movement, Charles Abangwu, praised the leadership of the National Assembly for taking the bull by the horns in flagging off the Constitution review.
Abangwu, an octogenarian, urged the Committee to wipe tears off his people's eyes "by standing strictly on the side of truth while carrying out its duty and to prove to the rest of the world that this country can, in this present-day democracy, embark on such a sensitive exercise and come out with decisions that can stabilise our nationhood."
Adada State Actualisation Committee Chairman, Godwin Ugwuoke, maintained that "the inauguration of the Committee was being expected anxiously by our people because of the genuine case we have had in the past decades."
"It is a welcome development and we urge the Committee to follow the guidelines spelt out, as contained in the speech of (Mark).
"It should come out with a report that will assuage the quest for equity by Nigerians, and should not fail in the vital national assignment."
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