By Emma Amaize, Regional Editor, South-South
The Anioma people in the Delta North senatorial district, Delta State, may probably celebrate the creation of Anioma State sooner than they expected, given the turbo energy exerted in the campaign for the new state in the last few months.
Read Also: Anioma stakeholders renew campaign for state creation
The struggle currently led by Senator Ned Nwoko, representing the Delta North senatorial district, dates back over 50 years. The former premier of the defunct Midwest Region, Sir Dennis Osadebey, Senator Nosike Ikpo, and other eminent leaders spearheaded the move in the defunct Western and later Midwestern Region. In the defunct Bendel, and now Delta State, succeeding Anioma leaders continued the pursuit.
However, disagreement among the present crop of leaders over the setting of the new state is threatening the realization of the shared vision. Nwoko’s proposition in his bill before the Senate is for Anioma State to be the sixth state in the South-East region.
The Anioma people are found in nine local government areas in Delta State, which is in the South-South region. The nine local government areas include Oshimili North, with headquarters in Akwukwu-Igbo, and Oshimili South, with headquarters in Asaba. Others are Aniocha North with Issele-Uku as the headquarters; Aniocha South (Ogwashi-Uku); Ika South (Agbor); Ika North East (Owa-Oyibu); Ndokwa East (Aboh); Ndokwa West (Kwale); and Ukwuani (Obiaruku).
Where Okowa and Nwoko differ
Nwoko’s proposal for Anioma State to be part of the South-East region is a major point of contention between him and the immediate past governor of Delta State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, and other Anioma political leaders. The arguments for and against the setting triggered a storm among the people of the Delta North senatorial district, with some siding with Okowa and others rooting for Nwoko.
No Anioma leader, including Okowa, is opposed to the creation of Anioma State; the disagreement is carving out Anioma from the present Delta State in the South-South region and adding it as a new state in the South-East region.
Senator Nwoko voiced a few hours after he defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in January, ”I left because I want to be able to get the support of the ruling party in the creation of Anioma State. The governor (referring to Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborewori) and former governor (meaning Okowa), who are the leaders of the PDP, are against the creation of Anioma State.”
The senator did not reveal the details of his disagreement with Okowa and Governor Oborevwori. Okowa, an Anioma son, has not openly exhibited disapproval, but sources said he is against Nwoko taking Anioma to the South-East geopolitical zone. Governor Oborevwori is not from Anioma; he hails from the Delta Central senatorial district.
Okowa and some other notable Anioma political leaders were noticeably absent at the Anioma Stakeholders Summit, which Nwoko convened in Asaba in August last year to drum up support for the new state.
Commenting on the former governor’s non-appearance at the summit, Nwoko said, ”I told Okowa what we are doing. Okowa told me he is supporting Anioma State. But he said it should be in South-South, Nigeria.”
The Senate held a public hearing on the bill to create Anioma State in Akwa-Ibom State on July 4. A participant hinted that the organizers moved the hearing to the Ikot-Ekpene community following an alleged threat to interrupt the proceedings in Asaba.
In his words, “They conscripted lawbreakers to upset the hearing, so while some people are planning for the creation of Anioma State, others are using stand-ins to halt the program.”
Delta North LGA chairs deny Nwoko
A few hours after the conclusion of the public hearing on the creation of Anioma State at Ikot-Ekpene, the Forum of Delta North Local Government Chairmen in the nine local government areas dissociated themselves from a document purporting that they had endorsed the creation of Anioma State as proposed by Senator Nwoko.
They stated, “We wish to state unequivocally that we are not in any way against the creation of Anioma State, but that due process has to be followed. We neither saw, reviewed, nor signed the document purporting to support the creation of Anioma State from Delta State. At no time did any of us authorize any member of our management team or any individual to sign such a document on our behalf in our respective councils.”
“As of today, none of us have held any private meeting with Senator Ned Nwoko, representing Delta North Senatorial District, who is purportedly championing the movement for the creation of Anyama State.”
”The creation of a new state is a constitutional matter of serious national importance and should neither be conducted by proxy nor enveloped in secrecy or misrepresentation of people’s interests.”
Chairmen’s blackmail won’t stop Anioma State creation —Alika, Sen. Nwoko’s aide
The outburst of the nine local government chairmen constituted a drawback to the efforts of Nwoko and his team, who left Ikot-Ekpene with their heads held high less than 24 hours earlier.
However, Senator Nwoko, through Barrister Festus Alika, the legal head of the Anioma State Creation Technical Committee, issued a rebuttal to the council chairs.
In a statement, he said, “My attention has been drawn to a statement issued by the Forum of Delta North Local Government Chairmen disassociating themselves from a document titled “Request for the creation of Anioma State under Section 8 (1) (a) (i) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended),” which has been widely circulated across official and public platforms.”
“While the statement may appear disappointing, self-indicting, and dismissible on the surface, its implications for public accountability and historical truth require a clear and factual response. Silence in the face of such deliberate misrepresentation would be a disservice to the people and the integrity of this process.
“First, let it be unequivocally stated: there is no forgery, impersonation, or coercion involved in the said document. The claim is false, reckless, and entirely misleading. What we are witnessing is the unfortunate consequence of local government chairmen abdicating their responsibilities to subordinates and political handlers, only to feign ignorance when the gravity of constitutional engagement begins to unfold.
“For the record, the said document was formally and individually transmitted to all nine (9) local government chairmen in Delta North. Upon receipt and full understanding of its content and intent, many of the chairmen instructed their secretaries or designated officials to sign on their behalf, a practice not uncommon in public administration, especially where delegation of duties has been authorized.”
What truly is the bone of contention?
Many assumed that the council chairmen acted at the behest of Okowa, who also defected to the APC with the governor, Oborevwori, on March 27. He (Okowa) controls the political structure of the Delta North senatorial district, leaving no strong sphere of authority for Nwoko. His reported sidelining in the political leadership of Delta North is one of the reasons Senator Nwoko is not at peace with Okowa.
However, it became palpable that Okowa and Nwoko were at loggerheads when the former governor, after leaving office, attempted to consolidate power in the Delta North in 2023/2024. Senator Nwoko reasoned that Okowa tactically put him on the back burner with his political footwork.
Political observers noted that with his unflinching crusade for Anioma State, Senator Nwoko attracted the ire of Okowa and other Anioma political leaders because he did not appropriately gauge their opinion on the inclusion of Anioma State in the South-East region.
Nwoko dared the skeptics and forged ahead with the campaign, which resonated among a section of the youth and other supporters, especially in the Ndokwa land, who put up a strong fightback.
Many believe that, besides Governor Oborovweri, who would not want Delta State fragmented for obvious reasons, Okowa is the second most powerful politician in Delta State, and his influence will suffer a glaring nosedive if Anioma State, as Nwoko canvassed, is created.
The glory of a new Anioma State in the South-East region will go to Senator Nwoko, who had said he was not going for governorship. Nwoko wants the Ndokwa people, whom he described as the most marginalized in Delta State, to produce the first governor of the new state.
Support of Anioma legislators dicey
In Nigeria, the state House of Assembly is a key player in the initial stages of the process, requiring a two-thirds majority approval from members representing the area seeking state creation within the state’s legislature.
The request for a new state must be supported by at least two-thirds of the members representing the affected area in the National Assembly (both Senate and House of Representatives), the state House of Assembly of the area, and the local government councils within the district.
It is the success of the initial request that will lead the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a referendum within the affected area, where two-thirds of the people must approve the creation of the new state, and the result sent to each State House of Assembly member for consideration.
Each State House of Assembly is required to take a vote on a motion for the approval of the referendum result. The approval of the State House of Assembly is crucial to the creation of a new state. Finally, a resolution by a two-thirds majority of both the Senate and the House of Representatives is needed for the creation of a new state.
In the Delta North today, Senator Nwoko and other proponents of Anioma State could push through a referendum and support of the National Assembly. However, the question is: Can he guarantee the backing of the state lawmakers, which the council chairmen had foretold with their likely reaction?
Some stakeholders disclosed that members of the House of Assembly from the Delta North district had reportedly received instructions not to sign the state creation papers as required in the legislative process for state creation.
Why the Delta North royal fathers should intervene
For the Anioma State creation project to pass through the crucibles, the royal fathers may have to agree on the direction to go, whether South-East or to remain in the South-South, and quickly, invite the political leaders, starting from Okowa, who is currently passive in the process, Nwoko, the chief proponent, and others to let go their power tussle.
Unless they sit down at a roundtable to thrash out the nitty-gritty and harmonize the rancorous voices over the setting of the new Anioma State, the Anioma project may run into a costly slip-up at the eleventh hour.
The monarchs appear to be the only ones who can override Okowa and Nwoko in their present quest and command their subjects to support, or otherwise. The Asagba of Asaba, HRM Professor Epiphany Azinge, is the chairman of the Anioma State Creation Technical Committee with the Dein of Agbor, HRM Benjamin Ikenchuku Keagborrekuzi I, as his co-chairman.
The post Proposed Anioma State: Okowa/Nwoko rivalry fuels division among stakeholders appeared first on Vanguard News.
