Chief Bode George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, has strongly opposed the proposal to create 31 additional states in Nigeria, calling the idea unsustainable and ineffective in solving the country’s challenges.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday, George argued that the creation of more states would not address Nigeria’s structural problems or promote meaningful development.
His comments were in response to a recent statement by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Benjamin Kalu, who revealed that the House had received proposals for 31 new states.
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Kalu, who also chairs the House Constitution Review Committee, outlined the proposed states, which include several in various regions such as Okun, Okura, and Confluence (Kogi); Amana (Adamawa); New Kaduna (Kaduna); and Adada (Enugu), among others.
Despite these proposals, many political figures have rejected the idea as unnecessary. George reinforced this view, stressing that Nigeria should prioritize restructuring over the creation of additional states.
“Don’t tell me we should create more states. Forget about more states. We want to create more states, and then everybody will be rushing to Abuja. This is not sustainable,” George asserted.
He emphasised the importance of adopting a federal structure that truly empowers states, drawing comparisons with the American system.
“Let us look at our federal structure first, the same federal system we run with America. Why are we not running it as they run theirs?
“Go to New York City, the Mayor of New York controls the airport—the John Kennedy Airport—he controls the ports, the seaports. The Mayor of New York, not the governor.
“Go to New Orleans, the mayor there controls the ports. The same in Texas; all oil companies are not controlled by the President. That is federalism. Those people don’t run to Washington every hour to meet the President.
“In America, they have state police and even county police. Why can’t we have such here? The creation of more states is not sustainable. What we need now is to address the problems in our federal structure,” he said.
George also called for the devolution of power, emphasizing that granting more authority to the states would drive national development.
He expressed dissatisfaction with the existing constitution, labeling it dysfunctional and advocating for a full reform.
“The present constitution is not working. There is too much power at the centre, leaving states and local governments helpless and incapacitated.”
He highlighted that Nigeria is rich in resources across all its regions but contended that centralized governance has prevented their effective use.
“There is no state in this country that the Almighty has not endowed. It is either agriculture, minerals, or human resources.
“But the constitution of this country is not right. We need to revisit it and allow all those states to manage their resources.
“That is the beginning of the cleansing of this country. Nothing is working because the foundation is faulty,” he stated.
George called on the federal government to implement the 2014 National Conference (Confab) recommendations as a means to achieve true federalism and resolve Nigeria’s governance issues.
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