Enugu State governor Dr. Peter Mbah has called for the creation of an additional state in the Southeast to make it equal to the other six geopolitical zones.
Mbah also advocated for a rotational presidency and state police to give every part of the country a sense of belonging and better secure the nation.
He spoke on Thursday evening when he received the Senate Committee on Constitution Amendment members in the audience. They were on a courtesy visit to him at Government House, Enugu, ahead of the regional public hearing on constitution amendment held at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, during the weekend.
“One that excites us most is the idea of state policing. We have advocated ardently that states need to create state police services, just as you have the federal police, but with defined jurisdictions and operational parameters.
“We think that this is overdue, and there could not be a better time for that, given the fragilities we have in our various communities. The state police will be a truly welcome development in our Constitution.
“The South East suffers injustice. The fact that across the different geopolitical zones, the South East is the only one with five states. So that is also what we believe will be corrected in this amendment process.
“Of course, the idea of rotational presidency is essential too. We think that would give the South East and every other region a chance at the presidency.
“So, these are areas we believe are commendable and we will be presenting our position formally in the hearing tomorrow and the subsequent days,” he said.
Speaking earlier, Senate Deputy Chief Whip and delegation leader Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi said the Committee was in Enugu to get the input of the people of the South East into the constitution amendment process.
“The 1999 constitution has received a lot of criticism from Nigerians, including that it is the product of military dictatorship and, as such, does not represent the interests of all the segments that make up Nigeria. As a result of these criticisms. There is a need to alter the constitution from time to time.
“We pray that this engagement will afford us the people of South East the opportunity to right some wrongs as a result of the position of the 1999 constitution, which we the people of South East are crying foul that we are being marginalised in so many areas, particularly as it relates to the number of states, juxtaposing same with other geopolitical zones of Nigeria,” Nwebonyi state.
