Constitutional Amendment: Nsukka People Demand Creation Of Adada State

Creating Adada State out of Enugu State is the top priority of the people of Nsukka at the ongoing zonal public hearing of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, taking place in Enugu.

The Enugu zone is for Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi states.

A retired civil servant, Nze Uroko Arua, told THE WHISTLER that, “I’m almost ninety years old, and still optimistic that Adada state will come to reality when this constitution is amended. It is long overdue.

“For the sake of equity, justice and fairness, Adada should be created out of Enugu State. It will bring the number of states in the Southeast to six, which brings it at par with other regions.

“Nigeria should be fair to Ndigbo by creating this state. It is in fact the highest legacy which President Muhammadu Buhari can give to us. Posterity will never forget him if this is done.”

A student of Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu, Onyebuchi Ossai, said, “I am from Nsukka, which is also called Enugu north senatorial zone. Nsukka is the only province during colonial administration that is yet to be created a state. This may be the last opportunity for its creation.

“I believe other issues are being looked into in the constitutional amendment procedures, but creating Adada tops it, especially for the Igbo; otherwise, it will amount to calculated marginalisation.

“Nsukka is the home of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. It has a very large expanse of land. It has numerous mineral deposits. This is our moment.”

Meanwhile, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, at the event, said his administration ‘supports amendments of the 1999 Constitution to enhance the nation’s unity and prosperity in an environment where justice, fairness and equity shall prevail’.

The deputy president of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, in an address presented on his behalf by Senator Ike Ekweremadu, said the Senate decided to listen to Nigerians at the geo-political level before the national public hearing because of ‘the critical importance the Constitution Review Committee places on the sub-national levels of governance in Nigeria’.

Senator Ome-Agege, who is the chairman, Senate Committee on Constitutional Review, said, “If we get those items through constitutional processes of alteration successfully, then our constitutional democracy will be set on the right pedestal, and ultimately, Nigeria will take its pride of place among the enviable constitutional democracies in the world.

“This ongoing review provides a platform for the good people of Nigeria to express their opinions on the fundamental law that governs our lives through proposals that will lead to the highest good for the greatest number of our people.”

Speaking on behalf of his colleagues from Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi states, the speaker of the Enugu State House of Assembly, Mr Edward Ubosi, said state legislatures of the region would first seek opinions of Southeasterners before adopting the outcome of the constitutional review by the National Assembly.

Federal and state lawmakers of the zone; religious leaders, interest groups and students graced the event. It will end tomorrow.