Eastlink:
Again, in the same thread created by Naptu, I noticed a few people use the word “We” in their satisfaction of appreciating their presence in the south-south. While it shows their joy in finding their feet in a place they appreciate it's never the same for some of us. That's one thing that pisses me.

Some of my brethren in the south south have this penchant of speaking for everyone. Why will you speak for me when I was not consulted before adding my community into the South-South. Did I cast a vote to be a stay away from my kinsmen in the South-East?

Are you speaking for my people who have never hidden their intention to join the South-East. Are you aware that we clamoured different times for Port-Harcourt state from the 1980’s to 1990’s. Maybe a lot of folks might have forgotten, the likes of Obi Wali championed a Port-Harcourt state for Igbo speaking people to be out of Rivers state. But he never lived to see that dream.

By right three states ought to have been created out if the old Rivers state. Bayelsa, Rivers and Port-Harcourt state. Bayelsa for those in yenagoa section, Port-Harcourt for us and Rivers for the likes of Kalabari, Okrika, Ogoni, Andoni and Bonny who wanted to stay on their own.

Abacha created Bayelsa state only, and that dream was cut short. But after some years our fathers began clamouring for Orashi state to be added to the South-East. We submitted our request to Ohaneze-Ndigbo in the last SNC hosted by Jonathan. The same applies to the Anioma who's intention was to add them as the 6th South-East state. And so our Orashi was added in the plans for other Igbo future states such as Anioma, Njaba, Aba, Adada etc.

While Naptu might be firm with his analysis of the geo-political zone creation, he wasn't upright with his description of how Ekweme envisaged it.

Abacha created the zones and fine-tuned it to favour the north only. Assuming Ekwueme was in position to create the geo-political zones, I bet he’ll do the following.

1. Add Anioma, Orashi / PH, Benue/Kogi Igbos to the South-East.
2. Add Ilorin, Kabba and Itshekiri to South-West
3. Add Kaduna south, Kebbi south and Adamawa, Taraba to Middle belt
4. Add Ijaws in Ondo to South-South and all that.

Everyone would have been homogeneous to their region and peace would reign.

BuyAndSellStuff:
I have observed that some bigots lace their tribalism with 'maturity' on this forum.

They are hardcore tribalists but always appear diplomatic & mature on the outside so you don't call them out. They put distorted or misquoted 'facts' out in public & wait patiently for their much bolder colleagues to carry on their evil work.

They never 'fact-check' against the government despite its numerous gaffes but they are usually quick to proffer same against their perceived 'enemies'.


They are dangerous.

Akponmfet:
Why are you people always crying like babies?
Why are you so afraid to stand alone?
Your obsession with the South South is what will eventually destroy you.
You guys must learn how to deal with rejection.
We are South South and you are South East and that's how it's going to be.

After insulting jonathan and calling his wife names you want our blessings to ridicule IGBO...NA LIE...UNA FAIL!!!!

YOU ARE DESPERATE..Knowing that Biafra will enforce your slavery to the Fulani permanently.

UNA GO SOON UNDERSTAND...

IGBO PEOPLE..... TRULY THESE AFONJA ARE REALLY OBSESSED!! AND ITS DISGUSTING

Akponmfet:
Why are you people always crying like babies?
Why are you so afraid to stand alone?
Your obsession with the South South is what will eventually destroy you.
You guys must learn how to deal with rejection.
We are South South and you are South East and that's how it's going to be.

esnbrutality:
I SMASHED YOUR AFONJA POSTS WITH FACTS...and you changed moniker from "Ekpeitit" to this useless one to CONTINUE fighting IGBO PEOPLE??

You people are truly the UNITY BEGGARS IN THIS COUNTRY....but as Promised, we are waiting for Afonja campaign train to come to our region.

After insulting jonathan and calling his wife names you want our blessings to ridicule IGBO...NA LIE...UNA FAIL!!!!

YOU ARE DESPERATE..Knowing that Biafra will enforce your slavery to the Fulani permanently.

UNA GO SOON UNDERSTAND...

IGBO PEOPLE TRULY THESE AFONJA ARE REALLY OBSESSED!!

Eastlink:
Which “We” are proud south-south? Did you read the article or you just jump to rant ignorantly.

There's just one thing that I want to add to your thread. It revolves around the idea that Abacha drew the boundaries and the geographical locations of the zones.

Alex Ekwueme addressed this issue in his interview. Both Ekwueme and Abacha are not the sources of the problems that you identified. You need to go back in time for that.


What both Ekwueme and Abacha did was to use the existing states in drawing up the zones

Ekwueme said that the South-South consisted of the COR states and the Midwest. What were the boundaries of the COR states and Midwest? That's where the issue is

Kwara State had been in the Northern Region at Independence. Ekwueme also mentioned this. In drawing up the zones in the North, they used places that already existed in the Northern Region

So you see, it wasn't Ekwueme or Abacha that did this and that's why it is not in my thread.


There was an old thread about this issue (I think it was from 2012 or so), I'll go and search for it.


However, I welcome this thread. It should be interesting.

I'll also give you a boost. Ekwueme hinted at something, and that thing is what I'm going to use to search for the old thread. He mentioned the CORR States. That was a group of minorities that wanted their own state and submitted a petition to the Wilink Commission.

I have a strong suspicion that those agitations at the Wilink Commission influenced Ekwueme in creating the zones. It would be interesting to read them.

@helinus who send you??

Guy make i tell you something....NEVER QUOTE me again...

I AM NOT DUMB ...and i dont want you to pass it on to me...kapish??

GTFOH!!....SPITS!!

Monogamy:


Is that how the Igbos are afraid of South South people that you can't face them head on.. Must anyone speaking as a South South people be impersonator?

Eastlink:
Cc
Naptu
Sammy
Igboid
TonyeBacanista
Ojiofor
Garfield
Edodefence
Abagworo
Helinues

And all others.

Some have suggested the abolition of the states and for the six geopolitical zones to become the federating bodies. Do you concur?

The states don’t have to be abolished. It is a matter of nomenclature. When we had Eastern Region, we had 12 provinces which Michael Okpara created. Ogoja province, Calabar Province, Uyo Province, Annang Province, Enugu Province, Onitsha Province, Owerri Province, Umuahia Province and Port-Harcourt Province, Degema Province. There were six provinces in the minority areas and six in the Igbo areas, and all these provinces had their provincial commissioners, had their assemblies and had their provincial scholarship boards.

I did my analysis while I was in Kirikiri Prison, the only problem with the form of government that we had with that structure was that it was lopsided. The structure of the regions at independence was such that one region, the North was said to have been bigger than the two other regions, East and West and when even Mid-West was created the North was still bigger than East, West and Midwest and in a parliamentary system based on population, the membership of the parliament allocated more seats to Northern Region than to all other regions put together.

If as they did in the North, they all decided to go into one party, a Northern party, and they elected all their legislators on that party, then they would continue to have the leadership of the country for ever which would not be palatable to the rest of the country. That was one fault in the disparity in the size of the regions.

The second problem I discovered was that within each region, you had majority group and a group of minorities. In the West, the Yoruba were the majority group, and the minority group was what grouped together in what became the Midwest. In the East, the Igbo were the majority and the minority group called themselves the COR State – Calabar, Ogoja, Rivers. In the North, Hausa Fulani were the majority group and the minority were mostly the Middle Belt and to some extent, the Kanuri.

So, you had a struggle within each region between the majority and the minority. So, I decided to cure these two problems that we must have parity of regions between the Old North and the Old South and that was why I decided to have parity of geopolitical zones between the North and the South.

And it also helped to have parity between the majority regions and the minority regions; the majority regions being in the Northwest, mostly Hausa-Fulani, Southwest, mostly Yoruba and the Southeast , mostly Igbo; and the minority regions being Northeast where you have the Kanuri with a number of ethnic groups in Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa and Taraba; and in the North Central you have Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa, Kogi, Kwara, Niger; and in the South you have the minorities in the former Midwestern Region and the minority of the Southeast region who together formed the South-South.

So instead of three regions, you now have six regions; three majority, three minority; three in the North, three in the South – parity between North and South, parity between majority and minority and the apportionment of representation would be as we negotiated with our colonial masters on the basis of which we got our independence.

Ojiofor:


Your analysis are as clear as the day.
Thank God the geopolitical zones that gave away Igbo communities in then Eastern region to a minority region is not yet constitutional.

naptu2:
I'll make it simple. You mentioned Kabba Province. Was Kabba Province part of Northern Nigeria before Abacha became head of state? Was it Abacha that made it part of the North?

Eastlink:
Kabba province remaining in the north was the decision of the colonial masters. Kabba province was suppose to be in the West if we follow due ethnic delineation. The same applies to Asaba province which ought not to be in the west and Benin province which suppose to be the rightful mid-west.

esnbrutality:
@helinus who send you??

Guy make i tell you something....NEVER QUOTE me again...

I AM NOT DUMB ...and i dont want you to pass it on to me...kapish??

GTFOH!!....SPITS!!

Eastlink:
Exactly, a lot things in this country are not constitutional. Which give space for review.

BabaOneChance:
Good article, but most of your writeup is merely wishful thinking, which is not a bad thing. I think it's high time my Igbo people stopped forcing or trying to persuade the South South to accept them. If they want to stay independent, let them be. They're happy with the Abacha formula, so it's their choice. I believe the 5 Southeastern states are enough to form a nation of their own.

And lastly, Ondo is my state and it's situated in the southwest. I don't think anything or anyone can change that. Anyway, like I said before, it's all wishful thinking.

You told half of the story..
The fact that you conviniently overlooked was that Abacha went ahead to create more states and in the process caliberated a spurious boundary arrangements between the socalled South East and South South that made sure the SE was helmed in and totally encircled. Essentially, it's not the creation of the new regional blocs that made the SE "landlocked" (if I should borrow their words here), it's the corrupt demarcation of the boundaries..

It's also very poignant to remember that one vindictive Buhari was a big member of that Abachas government as the PTF head. While I agree with most of what you wrote about the hapless views of a placid Ekwueme, it's important to note that this fact you ignored is at the center of the problems going on as it regards the make up of these areas. No one is upset with the regions, what folks are perturbed about is the mindless utilization of these fake boundaries to allienate and devide "border communities" and steal their resources as is the case in places like Egbema and Obigbo

BabaOneChance:
Good article, but most of your writeup is merely wishful thinking, which is not a bad thing. I think it's high time my Igbo people stopped forcing or trying to persuade the South South to accept them. If they want to stay independent, let them be. They're happy with the Abacha formula, so it's their choice. I believe the 5 Southeastern states are enough to form a nation of their own.

And lastly, Ondo is my state and it's situated in the southwest. I don't think anything or anyone can change that. Anyway, like I said before, it's all wishful thinking.