Reps move to create additional state in South East

The House of Representatives has introduced a bill seeking the creation of an additional state to be called Etiti State in the South East.

The bill, titled: “Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2024 (HB. 1525), was sponsored by Rep Amobi Godwin Ogah and four others and passed first reading at the plenary on Tuesday.

The co-sponsors included Rep Princess Miriam Odinaka Onuoha (Okigwe/Onuimo); Rep Kama Nkemkama; Rep Princess Chinwe Nnabuife and Rep Anayo Onwuegbu.

The bill seeks to alter three sections of the 1999 Constitution to delete the word 36 and replace it with 37 to accommodate the new state and to insert the word Etiti immediately after Enugu in the list of states contained in the constitution.

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The bill also seeks the creation of Etiti State from parts of present Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states and will have 11 local government areas drawn from the five states with headquarters in Lokpanta.

It also seek to alter the listing of local governments according to states and transfer the 11 local government areas to the new state.

The local government areas to be affected are Isuikwuato and Umu-Nneochi (Abia), Orumba North and Orumba South (Anambra), Ivo and Ohaozara (Ebonyi), Aninri, Agwu and Oji River (Enugu), as well as Okigwe and Onuimo (Imo).