From far away Toronto, Canada yesterday came reasons why
creation of states might no longer be feasible in the Seventh
National Assembly. A high public debt profile of the federal
and state governments running into trillions of naira and
dwindling revenue available to the three tiers of government
were some of the reasons counted against creation of more
states as earlier promised by the National Assembly.
Hopes of creation of more states might now be a mirage as
the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution
Review (CRC), Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu
has canvassed a return to regionalism. Two weeks ago,
Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN) had canvassed a
voluntary merger of states if it would be politically and
economically viable. To Ndoma-Egba, “states creation was
now more of an emotive issue.”
Regardless, Senator Ekweremadu has called for the six geo-
political zones to be federating units against the backdrop of
dwindling resources available at the centre.
There are already 47 requests for creation of more states pending before the National
Assembly Joint Committee on Constitution Review.
Ekweremadu’s views were contained in a lecture he delivered at the Sixth Annual Oputa
Lecture at the Osgoode Hall Law School, York University in Toronto, Canada.
Speaking on “Nigerian Federalism: A Case for a Review, “he commended states in
several geo-political zones already coming together to streamline their development
policies and agenda as well as aggregate their resources and areas of comparative
advantages to develop their regions.
“A return to the regions in the long-term seems a major plausible thing to do if we are to
nurse any hopes of reversing the dwindling fortunes of our federalism by engendering
viability and self-reliance of the component units, massive development, healthy
competition, reduce cost of governance and enthrone acceptable level of equity,” he
emphasized. Ekweremadu urged Nigerians to spare a thought on a possible return to
regionalism where the six geo-political zones would become the federating units.
He said the unhealthy and unviable state of the component states of the federation had
made it imperative for the nation to take a second look at the continual proliferation of
states and the dispersal of resources. Speaking further, Ekweremadu who identified the
period between 1954 and January 1966 as the golden era of Nigerian federalism, said
the socio-economic prosperity recorded in the First Republic was possible because the
regions were neither subservient to nor dependent on the centre.
He regretted that “the brand of fiscal federalism in place today looked every inch that of
master and servant relationship and was therefore, killing industry, initiative, and
creativity, while promoting indolence, bad governance, and rentierism.”
Senator Ekweremadu said the resurgence of debate on Nigeria’s fiscal federalism
underlines the fact that the nation needed to “move away from the current military-
imposed ‘feeding bottle’ federalism to enthrone one predicated on self-reliance, hard
work, enterprise, resourcefulness, and ingenuity to catalyse development” He also
faulted the current power sharing formula which he said, laid the foundation for the
nation’s distorted federalism as the centre appeared to have amassed more powers than
it actually needed or could manage.“The expansion of federal powers was illustrated by
the fact that between the Independence Constitution and the 1999 Nigerian
Constitution, 16 out of the 28 items on the Concurrent List, which translates to about 57
per cent, had been lost to the Exclusive List.
“In the same period also, the federating units have lost at least seven items on the
Residual List to the Exclusive List.

Unfortunately, our political elite are ok with the current status quo. Changing it might drastically reduce the looting opportunities.

Mr Deputy Senate President, please don't tell us what we know already. The NASS has the power to amend the constitution, go ahead and amend it.

MANY SUCCESSFUL COUNTRY HAD ADVICE NIGERIA IN THE PAST TO INTRODUCE AUTONOMOUS SYSTEM THAT'S THE ONLY SYSTEM THAT WILL CONTRIBUTE FAST DEVELOPMENT ,PEACE ,RESPECT ,PROSPERITY ,COMPETITION .DECENTRALIZED THE SYSTEM OF EVERY THING IN NIGERIA ,NIGERIA GOVERNMENT WILL CONTINUE BEEN BROKE ,POVERTY AND ILLITERACY WILL CONTINUE GROWING RAPIDLY , THERE IS ALWAYS GONNA BE ETHNIC MISCONCEPTION BASED ON FEDERALISM .NIGERIA ALWAYS GOING TO FIGHT FOR POWER .IT WILL NEVER END . INTRODUCE AUTONOMOUS SYSTEM

Merge the bloody subsistence farmlands masquerading as states and lets have true federalism.

Beaf: Merge the bloody subsistence farmlands masquerading as states and lets have true federalism.

The states can remain but they will be under a region. Any region that wants to have fifty states can go ahead.

Demdem:

The north is ready for federalism https://www.nairaland.com/916539/194-eminent-elders-declare.......north-prepared#10623421
SW is ever ready.
OIL,oil,oil people are ready,
Biafra Soldiers are ever ready etc

What is the retardeen waiting for?

I keep asking which of your ancestors is called the retardeen?
Is it Uncle Adeleke Wasiu Retardeen, the champion ratcarcher? Una family de try o!