A report by the Nigerian newspaper, the Punch, recently revealed that the regional government bill which was disclaimed by the House of Representatives, will be on the President’s desk by Friday.
The new bill; “A Bill for an Act to substitute the Annexure to Decree 24 of 1999 with New Governance Model for the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” was drafted by chieftain Akin Fapohunda of the Yoruba socio-cultural association.
Among other things, it calls for new laws to be cited as “The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria New Governance Model for Nigeria Act 2024.”
“I’m submitting my letter (draft bill) today but I will wait for seven days before releasing it to the public,” the Yoruba chieftain relayed to the Punch newspaper.
The regions intended for autonomy as carved out in the bill would include the southern region to be made up of Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, and Cross Rivers States.
Fapohunda revealed that the Southern region would have the option of including “the Annang, Effik, Ekoi, Ibibio, Oro Ohaji/Egbema in Southern Imo, the Adonia, Efemia, Ijaw, Ogoni, Bini, Ishan, Isoko, Urhobo and the Ijaw-speaking people in Northern Ondo State with land contiguity.”
He also added that the “South Eastern region would consists of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo States.
The Western region would comprise Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, and Ekiti States, incorporating the Yoruba-speaking people in Kogi and the Igbomina people in Kwara State. Additional options would be the Itsekiri people of Delta State and Akoko-Edo people of Edo State to make their respective choices.”
As for the Mid-Western Region, he noted that it would be “made up of Edo and Delta States, possibly incorporating the Anioma people and the Eastern Middle Belt Region comprising Northern Cross River, Southern Kaduna, Southern Borno, Adamawa, Benue, Kogi, Plateau, Nasarawa and Taraba States.”
Sections of Borno, Gombe, Bauchi, Jigawa, and Yobe States will make up the North Eastern Region, while Southern Kebbi, portions of Kwara, and Niger States compose the Western Middle Belt Region.
Fapohunda also defined the North Western Region as Kaduna with portions of Kebbi, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto,
