Problems And Prospects Of State Creation In Nigeria

Problems And Prospects Of State Creation In Nigeria

Chapter One

Preface

Background of the study

Nigeria is a plural society with different splits in terms of ethnical, religious, artistic, verbal, as well as geo- political, social and profitable development, but ethnical diversity is incontrovertibly, the most pervasive of them all( Vande,( 2012). The development of Nigerian Federalism as a dynamic process can best be understood with reference to its ethnical configuration. Over the times, the process has involved the creation of further countries to reduce political domination at the Civil position. It has also involved the attempt by nonage ethnical groups to challenge the ascendance of the three largest ethnical groups Hausa- Fulani, Yoruba, and Igbo in the political, social and profitable life of the country, each of which like some of the other ethnical groups, is also made up of a number ofsub-ethnic groups( Vande,( 2012).

From 1922 to 1960, ultramodern Nigeria passed through series of indigenous and political developments that ultimately made her a confederation. Within this period, the hunt for separate status within the confederation also started. In fact, the foremost morning of the issue of state creation can be traced to 1943 when Nnamdi Azikiwe recommended the division of the country into eight units. Four times latterly, Obafemi Awolowo recommended ten. The times between 1947 and 1960 witnessed violent agitations of nonages for their own state. In 1951, a movement was established under the leadership of the Oba of Benin, Akenzua II for the creation of Midwest State comprising Benin and Delta businesses. As the agitation was going on, the people of the Middle Belt area also began a call for the creation of the middle- Belt region under the crown of a party called the Middle Belt People’s Party. The nonages in the East weren’t also left out in the struggle for state creation. The Calabar, Ogoja and Rivers businesses also called for the creation of Calabar, Ogoja, Rivers State( COR) out of the Eastern Region( Ojiako, 1981). This hunt for countries by the colorful nonage groups redounded from the fear of domination and the need for accelerated profitable development.

These fears of the nonages of being dominated by the maturity ethnical groups in Nigeria surfaced relatively easily during the 1950s in the period antedating independence( Raheem, 2014). The first attempt ever to address the nonage fears in Nigeria was the Henry Willink Commission set up on September 25, 1957 by the Colonial Secretary( Mari, and Rindap, 2014). The Willink Commission completed its disquisition in April 1958. In a recommendation that affirmed that the nonage fears weren’t unsupported, the Commission proposed the balancing of power within the country so that there would be minimum temptation of the maturity to use power solely for its own advantage( Mari, and Rindap, 2014). While state creation was seen as the nostrum to the problem of the nonages, the Commission played down this for the reason that it would produce farther nonages. rather of state creation, the Commission felt that the interests of the nonages could be stylish defended at the Civil position by working out some popular ministry which would guard their interest. still, the Yakubu Gowon administration divided the country into 12 States in May 1967, which dramatically altered the configuration of the civil structure and the nature of maturity- nonage relations( Mari, and Rindap, 2014). By giving relative satisfaction to the long- standing ethnical nonage demands for new States, Gowon’s 12 State structure to a large extent liberated numerous nonage communities from the indigenous stranglehold of the maturity groups.

In recent times, there have been estrangements with the idea of state creation in Nigeria. One of the major reasons for similar estrangements with respects to state creation in Nigeria has to do with profitable viability of the created countries. According to Onimisi( 2014), the profitable viability of the being countries in Nigeria has always been questioned. These are farther verified by the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, when he stated that “ utmost of the countries and original governments in the country aren’t feasible. ” He questioned and reason behind creating further state, original government and ministries which aren’t economically feasible( Okubenji, 2011). According to Odigwu( 2012), only five countries out of the 36 countries in Nigeria are considered feasible. He noted that the evaluation of the conditioning of the 36 countries will be anatomized on the bases of Gross Domestic product( GPD), severance and poverty. According to Baffour( 2015), the pining for creation of new countries of colorful interest groups in the Nigerian polity through arguments of marginalization grounded on egoism, ethnical sentiments and contest can no longer hold sway, as utmost of the being 36 countries had failed the litmus test test of responsibility and profitable viability. Baffour( 2015) farther noted that on Tuesday 16th June, 2015, some state governors in Nigeria gathered in Abuja to supplicate for civil bailout because they couldn’t pay workers ’ hires and pension allowances for over six or seven months in arrears. According to him, these were the same countries that met the criteria for creation either by the military edict or the Nigerian 1999 constitution in which internally generated profit from mortal capital development, natural and material coffers were crucial prerequisites for successful take- off of new countries. Supporting the view of Baffour, Ojo( 2009) noted that looking at creation of countries in Nigeria from the angle of profitable viability, there appears to be no defense for the creation of further countries in Nigeria in the foreseeable future as nearly all the being 36 countries in Nigeria aren’t economically feasible. He noted that piecemeal from Lagos State, which has tried to balance its budget since its creation, all other countries have had to depend on the civil government for survival.

enterprises have also been raised with the torrent of boundary controversies, which has riddled different countries that were preliminarily one. Since independence, the only jurisdictional partitioning that was done in agreement with the vittles of the enactment book was the creation of the also Midwest region from the also western region in 1963( Fatile, 2011). Alternate and by extension, it can be said that thirty- two out of the being thirty- six countries were created without due process under the military absolutism. According to Fatile( 2011), the multitudinous attendant artificial boundaries have rained several conflicts. These boundaries in several cases had ended up dividing people of the same artistic affinity; some were intermingled with traditional hostile neighbours in strange matrimonies. Further, others were spread thinly as nonage in several countries. for case, the Ijaw of the Niger Delta are spread thinly among nine countries. It’s instructional to point out that whilst the 1967 state- creation exercise was largely designed to give satisfaction to ethnical nonage bournes for autonomy, posterior reorganizations have served further to satisfy the distributive in interests of the three ethnical maturity conformations than to assuage the fears of politically vulnerable ethnical nonage communities( Suberu, 2001). Specifically while six of the twelve- state structures were nonage ethnical groups, the current thirty- six- state has only fourteen nonage group States, against twenty- two for the major three ethnical groups( The Guardian, 13 March, 1994 A14).

It’s important to emphasize then that the creation of fresh countries in Nigeria at different times have redounded into harmonizations of the boundaries of States and original governments in the country( Fatile, 2011). Related to this, Nse( 2009) noted that boundary adaptation extremity have passed over the decades in the different stages of countries creation which has led tointer-state dissensions and conflicts. therefore, as further countries are created in Nigeria, further conflicts arise due to passions of marginalization of certain groups in the state. According to Fatile( 2011), the attendant effect of States creation and the attendant boundary adaptations is the conflictual intergovernmental commerce among the element units of the Nigerian State, utmost especially inter and intrastate conflicts. therefore, with the increase in the number of countries in Nigeria, there has also been an increase in the recorded cases of interstate and intrastate boundary controversies in different corridor of the country. moment, Nigeria has thirty- six countries; still there’s demand for further countries and complaints on unstable profit allocation by the Federal Government( Nse, 2009).

Despite the estrangements that have traced state creation in Nigeria, there those who support the idea of state creation for certain reasons. According to Adeleye( 2014), one of the surest ways of drawing the government closer to the people, and promoting rapid-fire infrastructural development, profitable growth and broaden political participation in a political reality, is to produce as numerous countries as can be considered applicable for a country in relations to its population and geographical mass. Gbemre( 2014) noted that Nigeria which has about 250 lines/ ethnical groups, has been demoralized with the issues of marginalization, tribalism, race, religion and what have you; so much so that the political leadership introducing of the country has been negatively affected since independence. Gbemre( 2014) further stressed that the significance of creating further new countries can not be overemphasized. Once a state is created, its capital has a way of coming together to come an civic centre of magnet over time. A recently created state has a way of giving the people concerned a sense of belonging and over time, it has a way of sorting out colorful avenues that would yield profit and take care of the future. Take for illustration countries like Bayelsa with its capital megacity Yenegoa. When it was created, Yenegoa was all swampy and bushy and they had only one stuffing station at that time; but moment, it has come a mecca of civic magnet for all kinds of businesses. In a nutshell, a recently created State formerly on its way of being developed will attract all feathers of business openings and commercial conditioning, including government’s presence that will be near to the people. The number of original governments alone and their councils is enough to absorb a great number of unemployed locals, thereby addressing the problem of severance.

The nonage problem in Nigeria ismulti-dimensional. It includes the desire for tone- determination and escape from domination by major ethnical groups; the hunt for political applicability in the Nigerian political equation; and the desire to profit directly from the public wealth( Adetoye, 2016). therefore, there’s the idea of liberating ethnical nonages through state creation in Nigeria. Viewed from the perspective of ethnical nonage in the literature, it has been argued that state creation is able of soothing the rasped jitters of nonage ethnical groups. Naturally, the polyethnic nature of the Nigerian society has always constituted a political problem for the country( Adetoye, 2016). He noted it’s so especially in the specific area of the instability of the nonages in the country. therefore, state creation inciters have accounted their demand as a way of escaping domination by larger ethnical groups. This fear of domination becomes real and palpable when viewed against the background of the ethnical and geo- political structure of immediatepost-independent Nigeria where each of the three regions was dominated by a particular ethnical group and political party( Adetoye, 2016)..

Statement of the Problem

The problems of governance in Nigeria started long before the country gained independence from the British pioneers in 1960. The pioneers employed “ peak and rule ” tactics in order to exploit and pacify the natives from who were uprooted cheap labor and huge coffers. Problems of governance strengthened after independence as the British introduced three major ethnical groups( Ibo, Yoruba and Hausa) to control a nation with over 370 ethnical nonages. dissensions over proper governance and treatment of ethnical groups have led to colorful results, including accomplishments,counter-coups, tried secession, administrations by military officers, and mercenary governments.

The nonages ’ fear of domination by the three major groups and rejection from important demanded scarce coffers was a licit concern that has led to demonstrations and agitations for the creation of further countries. From the perception of inciters for creation of countries in Nigeria, the exercise is perceived as a conveyor belt of development to the heretofore underdeveloped areas of the country. It’s also anticipated that the exercise was able of promoting indeed development and could grease the spread of socioeconomic amenities and openings to the new countries particularly the capital metropolises, civic municipalities and pastoral areas in that order( Adetoye, 2016).

still, state creation has noway resolved ethnical conflicts rather; it led to bifurcation of ethnical groups. The further countries that are created, the further the problem they’re intended to break persists. Just as the exercises enervate the constituent units vis- à- vis the civil government so do they detach the units one from the other. The state creation exercises have heightened the aborigine-non-indigene miracle( statism) which is contrary to a sense of common nationhood( Eze, Elimian. and Chinwuba, 2015).

As the number of recently- created countries increased from 3 to 4, to 12, and also to the present 36, former majorities come disabused with loss of power, while former nonages soon come major groups who dominate other lower nonages.

Objects of the Study

Generally this study attempts to examine problems and prospects of state creation a relative study of Ebonyi and Abia States. Specifically, the study seeks

1. To assess the financial viability of Ebonyi and Abia States.

2. To assess cases of boundary controversies in Ebonyi and Abia States since they were created.

3. To assess the impact of development in Ebonyi and Abia States since they were created.

4. To assess if ethnical nonages in Ebonyi and Abia States have been liberated since their creation.

Exploration Questions

The following exploration questions were formulated to guide the study.

1. Are Ebonyi and Abia States fiscally feasible since their creation?

2. Have there been cases of boundary controversies in Ebonyi and Abia States since they were created?

3. Has there been positive development in Ebonyi and Abia States since they were created?

4. Have ethnical nonages in Ebonyi and Abia States been liberated since their creation?

Exploration Hypotheses

The study intends to examine the following null suppositions

H01 Ebonyi and Abia States aren’t fiscally feasible

H02 there have been cases of boundary controversies since the creation of Ebonyi and Abia States

H03 There has been positive development in Ebonyi and Abia States since they were created.

Significance of the Study

The study will help policy makers and those in power to see the negative effect of nonage question and ethnical marginalization and in a way make the leaders see reasons or how effective the government at all situations can exercise true federalism by involving all the nonage groups in the structure of governance to insure equity.

Compass of the Study

This study will cover both Ebonyi and Abia States. It’ll involve both the major and minor ethnical groups in the two countries. the study will cover the period of the two countries were crated till date.