BREAKING: House of Reps Committee Recommends Creation of 31 New States

Nigeria’s House of Representatives committee has put forward a proposal for the creation of 31 additional states, sparking nationwide debate on governance, resource allocation, and federalism.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives Committee on reviewing the 1999 Constitution announced that it has received 31 proposals for creating new states in all six geopolitical zones.

During the plenary session, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu presented a letter from the committee that detailed the conditions required for approving any requests for state creation.

The letter states that the proposals consist of five from North Central, four from North East, five from North West, five from South East, four from South South, and seven from South West.

The states under consideration include Okun, Okura, and Confluence in Kogi; Benue Ala and Apa in Benue; FCT State; Amana in Adamawa; Katagum in Bauchi; Savannah in Borno; and Muri in Taraba.

The states also include New Kaduna State and the Gujarat States from Kaduna; Tiga and Ari from Kano, and Kainji from Kebbi. In the South East, Etiti and Orashi represent a new sixth state, along with Adada from Enugu, as well as Orlu and Aba.

The list also includes Ogoja from Cross River, Warri from Delta, Ori and Obolo from Rivers; Torumbe from Ondo, Ibadan in Oyo, Lagoon in Lagos. Additionally included are Ogun and Ijebu both located in Ogun State as well as areas like Oke Ogun/Ijesha that span across the states of Oyo, Ogun, and Osun.

The letters indicate that Section 8 of the amended 1999 Constitution details specific requirements necessary to begin the process of creating a new state.

The letter stated that a request to the National Assembly for establishing a new state can only be approved if it is backed by at least two-thirds of the members from both the Senate and House of Representatives, as well as those in the respective House of Assembly and Local Government Council.

The local government reminds advocates for the creation of additional areas that Section 8 of Nigeria’s amended Federal Constitution applies to this process.

In line with Section 8.3 of the Constitution, the results from State Houses of Assembly votes during the referendum must be submitted to the National Assembly to address state demands.

Proposals must be resubmitted in full compliance with the specified guidelines. Please submit three hard copies of the entire memorandum proposal to the Committee Secretariat, located in Room H331, House of Representatives, White House, National Assembly Complex, Abuja.

Electronic copies must also be sent to the Committee’s email address at info.hccr.gov.nj.

The Committee is dedicated to supporting implementation efforts that align with Constitutional provisions and will only consider proposals compliant with the established guidelines.