A group, identified as Aba State Movement, has said that the request for the creation of Aba State is a quest for equity based on history which has stretching more than 40 years.
The group made the declaration in their presentation through their representative, Chief Theo Nkire, to the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution which sat in Owerri for Imo and Abia States.
While presenting the case for the proposed Aba State, he recalled that the House of Representatives passed a motion for a referendum on the creation of Aba, Abia, Ebonyi, and Enugu States from the then Anambra and Imo States in January 1982.
The group said that in June 1983, the Senate passed the same motion on the creation of Aba, Abia, Ebonyi, and Enugu States from the then Anambra and Imo States.
While on the same day the National Assembly confirmed the four States and others for referendum.
The group said that of the four states the National Assembly confirmed for referendum by 1983, Aba State was the only one that had not been created from the South East.
Chief Nkire, who was the first Attorney-General of Abia State, said that recently, Aba State’s case was made by a committee that Chief John Nnia Nwodo, immediate past President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, inaugurated on 11 September 2018, in his capacity as the President-General of Ohanaeze.
The group recalled that the Committee’s mandate was to evaluate requests for more States in the South East.
According to them the conclusion of the Committee’s report to Governor Dave Umahi, Chairman, South East Governors’ Forum stated, “The Committee considered the merit for the creation of Aba and Adada State respectively, resolved and recommended for the creation of Aba State with 12 members supporting and five abstaining.
According to him, the Committee also recommended that any other state creation exercise in the South-East should give Adada State priority and it was contained in a report dated 10 October 2018.
Aba State Movement insisted that they stood by the report of the Ohanaeze Committee on State Creation. Chief Nwodo, who was Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide President-General until January 2021, set up the Committee.
They maintained that the Ohanaeze Committee, under Chief Nwodo’s presidency recommended the creation of Aba State, insisted that the House of Representatives should consider that the request for the creation of Aba State additionally came with proofs that it had meet the requirements in Sections 8 and 9 of the Constitution as they relate to creation of States.
According to them President Muhammadu Buhari had promised an Ohanaeze delegation Chief Nwodo led to Abuja in November 2017 an extra state in the South East.
They observed that Chief Nwodo inaugurated the 2018 Ohanaeze Committee and it was the process in realisation of an extra State in the South East as the President promised.
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