Prominent Lawyer Discloses Name of New State to Be Created in Southeast, Explains Why It Fits Region

• A top Anambra lawyer has stepped forward with a bold name proposal for the new Southeast state
• Lawmakers had, at a Lagos retreat, moved closer to creating a long-demanded sixth state for the region
• Fierce debates are growing as Etiti, Anioma, and Orlu backers push rival visions of the Southeast’s future

A prominent lawyer from Anambra state, Barr Orji Nwofor-Orizu, has shared a name the new state to be created from the Southeast should bear.

Recall that the National Assembly Joint Committee on Constitution Review approved the creation of a new state in the region as part of its resolution in the ongoing review of the nation’s constitution.

Read also

Senator Ned Nwoko speaks on creation of new state in South East, sends message to Tinubu

The decision was taken by the committee during a two-day retreat held in Lagos between Friday, October 24, to Sunday, October 26, 2025.

If confirmed, the number of states in the Southeast will be six (6). The Southeast currently has 5 states: Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo.

The committee also resolved to establish a sub-committee to determine the specific area from which the new state will be created.

The proposal will then be debated at the Committee of the Whole, where members will vote to approve or reject it.

Read also

List of proposed new states in south east as one awaits creation after national assembly approval

The joint committee had earlier pledged to conclude the constitution review process and transmit its final recommendations to state Houses of Assembly before the end of 2025.

The approval for a new state in the Southeast is expected to generate fresh political contestation among governors and influential political figures seeking to have the new state located within their own state or area.

For example, there is a bill proposing the creation of Anioma state, currently part of Delta state. There have been agitations that Anioma should be recognised as the sixth state in the Southeast geopolitical zone, given that it is a predominantly Igbo-speaking area, rather than approving any of the other ongoing state creation proposals in the region. There is also this agitation for the creation of Orlu state from the present Imo state.

Read also

Man shares name of one new state that should be created from South East

There is yet another agitation for the creation of a state to be known as Etiti state within the Southeast region.

Influential lawyer names state

Meanwhile, prominent Anambra-born lawyer and political activist, Barr. Orji Nwofor-Orizu, renewed calls for the creation of Etiti State as the most suitable option for the Southeast region.

Nwofor-Orizu, a former president of the National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS), now NANS, convener of the Former Students Union Leaders Forum of Nigeria, and chairman of the Society for Advancement of Democracy in Nigeria (SAD), made the call during an exclusive interview with Legit.ng at his Otolo Nnewi residence on Sunday, October 26, 2025.

He opined that having a new state by carving some local government areas from each of the five states of the Southeast would be the best bet for the region, rather than carving a new state from just one existing state in the region. He advised stakeholders and politicians advocating for Anioma and Orlu states to withdraw the proposals from the National Assembly and concentrate on the request for the creation of Etiti state.

Read also

List of proposed countries agitators want to carve out of Nigeria

He said,

"Unarguably, the old Orlu region is very large, comprising 12 local government areas. It is enough to make a state; after all, Bayelsa has only 8 local government areas. But the expanse boundary is the only reason for the demands for the creation of Orlu state; but the shortcoming is that it is curved out of Imo state only."

"Anioma, on the other hand, is curved out of only Delta state, which is even across the Niger. So, it cannot serve as a Southeast state. On the other hand, Etiti state is a well-thought-out idea. I'm one of the earliest proponents of the Etiti state. I'm the first person to write about it in the newspaper."

"The Etiti state we're talking about comprises the most undeveloped regions of Igboland. They include Orumba North and Orumba South in Anambra state, Okigwe area of Imo state, Isikwato area of Abia state, Isiagu area of Ebonyi state, as well as Nokwa Nta/Nokwa Ukwu areas of Enugu state, with a capital at Okigwe."

Read also

National assembly establishes committee for creation of new states in all 6 regions

"All Igbo states are represented in the proposed Etiti state. The proposed state represents a proper developmental status for Igboland. Therefore, every Southeast stakeholder and politician should support it."

Countries' agitators want carved from Nigeria

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that secessionist groups in Nigeria are pushing to carve out new countries from the current federation.

Among the proposed entities are the Biafra Republic championed by the Igbo-led Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), the Oduduwa Republic advanced by Yoruba self-determination movements, the Niger Delta Republic pushed by militants in the oil-rich south-south region, and the Arewa Republic raised in fringe northern discourse. Legit.ng - Nigeria news.

These demands are grounded in feelings of marginalisation, ethnic identity claims, and resource-control grievances. Although none of the breakaway states is internationally recognised yet, they continue to influence political debate on restructuring Nigeria.

Source: Legit.ng