President Bola Tinubu is set to receive a draft bill on Friday proposing a return to a regional system of governance for Nigeria. The bill, authored by Akin Fapohunda, a prominent member of the Yoruba socio-cultural group Afenifere, and the Coalition of Indigenous Ethnic Nationalities (CIEN), aims to replace the current federal structure with a two-tier government system, consisting of federal and regional governments.
The proposed legislation, titled “A Bill for an Act to Substitute the Annexure to Decree 24 of 1999 with a New Governance Model for the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” seeks to decentralize power and promote regional autonomy to address Nigeria’s political and economic challenges.
Fapohunda announced on Thursday that the bill would be presented to President Tinubu on Friday. He explained that the initiative advocates for the division of Nigeria into eight geopolitical regions with interim boundaries.
According to the proposal, the southern region would include Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, and Cross River States, with optional inclusions of the Annang, Effik, Ekoi, Ibibio, Oro Ohaji/Egbema in Southern Imo, and various other groups in the contiguous areas. The southeastern region would consist of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo States.
The western region would comprise Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, and Ekiti States, incorporating the Yoruba-speaking people in Kogi and the Igbomina people in Kwara State. There are additional options for the Itsekiri people of Delta State and the Akoko-Edo people of Edo State to make their respective choices. The mid-western region would include Edo and Delta States, possibly incorporating the Anioma people.
Fapohunda also outlined that the eastern middle belt region would include Northern Cross River, Southern Kaduna, Southern Borno, Adamawa, Benue, Kogi, Plateau, Nasarawa, and Taraba States. The western middle belt region would comprise Southern Kebbi and parts of Kwara and Niger States. Lastly, the north-eastern region would consist of parts of Borno, Gombe, Bauchi, Jigawa, and Yobe States.
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