By Naomi Sharang
Sen. Diket Plang (Plateau Central) has said Nigeria’s democratic journey should embrace the creation of more states to achieve true federal balance and deepen grassroots governance.
Plang made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.
NAN reports that the National Assembly is currently reviewing the 1999 Constitution, considering 69 bills, including 55 state creation requests, two boundary adjustments and 278 local government proposals.
Plang said all existing states were created under military regimes, urging civilian administrations to take similar bold steps.
“My prayer is that our democratic government, for once, should be able to create additional states,” he said.
He noted that population growth and expanding constituencies made new administrative units necessary to bring governance closer to the people.
“A child grows, constituencies grow, wards grow, and so do local governments and states. The purpose of creating states is to ensure government reaches the grassroots,” he said.
The senator, who chairs the Senate Committee on Labour, Employment and Productivity, said population pressure justified such restructuring.
“When the population becomes too large, it becomes necessary to divide areas again so that governance can be closer to the people,” he added.
He acknowledged financial implications but insisted the need remained pressing. “Nigeria has grown, and it’s time we considered more states,” Plang said.
Commenting on proposals suggesting one new state per geo-political zone, Plang said fairness and necessity should guide the process.
“I was pleased with one proposal from the South-South, where people from three states are coming together to form a new one,” he said.
“They’re not dividing a single state but merging communities from a common boundary to create a new one. Until we see details, there’s no need for complaints.”
He said balanced representation would strengthen national unity.
“With six geo-political zones, creating one state per zone is not a bad idea if the need arises,” he added.
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a step, so we can’t say no to that,” Plang said. (NAN)
Edited by Francis Onyeukwu
