Afe Babalola Explains How Best to Create New States in Nigeria
- Legal icon Afe Babalola has called for a national referendum on the proposed creation of 18 new states in Nigeria, warning that expansion may worsen existing governance challenges
- He argued that past state formations were driven by structural needs, unlike recent proposals which lack economic sustainability
- Babalola also questioned the National Assembly’s ability to impartially reform the 1999 Constitution, urging urgent action on long-standing recommendations
Renowned legal luminary and founder of Afe Babalola University, Afe Babalola, has called for a national referendum on the proposed creation of 18 new states in Nigeria.
In a recent publication titled “Creation of Additional 18 States: Need for a Referendum (6)”, Babalola questioned the sustainability and rationale behind expanding the country’s current state structure.
Source: Twitter
Rationale behind state creation in Nigeria
Babalola reflected on the historical context of state creation, citing the 12 states established under General Yakubu Gowon’s administration. He stated that the move at the time was driven by the need to correct structural imbalances that threatened Nigeria’s political and economic stability. However, he argued that subsequent state formations lacked similar justification.
“It appears that subsequent creation of States were born out of other considerations of which the ability of the new states to sustain themselves was obviously not one,” Babalola wrote. He maintained that adding more states would only compound existing problems, rather than resolve them.
“The way out of the problem posed by the inability of the current 36 States to self-sustain is not the creation of additional 18 States. The possibility of getting the current States to merge should be explored rather than carving new ones out of them,” he added.
See the full article here.
National assembly and constitutional reform
In his concluding remarks, Babalola expressed scepticism about the National Assembly’s capacity to impartially address issues from which its members benefit under the 1999 Constitution. He listed several areas requiring urgent reform, including:
• Reduction in the number of legislative chambers
• Abolition or drastic reduction of salaries and allowances
• Payment of sitting allowances instead of jumbo salaries
• Elimination of constituency development grants
• Transition from a bicameral to a unicameral legislature
• Adoption of a parliamentary system
• Reduction of the National Assembly’s annual budget
Babalola asserted:
“I cannot conceive how the present National Assembly can in good conscience and impartially address some of the issues from which they are benefitting under the lopsided 1999 constitution.”
Call for referendum on state creation and governance
The senior advocate concluded his statement with a firm call for a nationwide referendum. He urged the government to urgently facilitate public voting on the issues he outlined, many of which, he noted, had already been discussed during the last Constitutional Conference.
“I therefore call on the government as a matter of urgency to put in place measures for the holding of referendum on all the above issues,” Babalola stated.
Source: Facebook
“How Dele Farotimi defamed me,” Afe Babalola speaks
Legit.ng earlier reported that Aare Afe Babalola, a renowned Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and founder of Afe Babalola University (ABU), has claimed that lawyer and activist Dele Farotimi defamed him in a book published recently.
According to reports released on Thursday, December 5, the accusation, stemmed from a Supreme Court judgment involving a land dispute that spanned over two decades.
In a petition made available to the press, the defamation allegations were linked to a Supreme Court case, SC/146/2005: Major Muritala Gbadamosi Eletu & Ors V. H.R.H Oba Tijani Akinloye & Ors.
Source: Legit.ng
