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SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

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SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

By: A.G.Abubakar

As your Excellency may have been aware, the drums of state creation are being beaten left, right and centre. Expectedly, the perennial agitators once more are in the arena. The current number is about 31 enclaves, with the major ones being Katagum (Bauchi), Ghari (Kano), New Kaduna (Kaduna), Ogoja (Cross Rivers), Oke-Ogun (Oyo), Kainji (Niger), Adada ((Enugu), Amana, (Adamawa), Okura, Okun (Kogi), Orlu (Imo), Warri (Delta), Apa (Benue) and many more have been dusting their memorandum for resubmission.

One hopes the Movements are not overlooking the provisions of Section 8 of the Constitution that deals with the creation of new state (s) in Nigeria. In any case, it is the people’s right to live out their idiosyncrasies as deem fit so long as they are within the Constitutional bounds. For the people of Southern Borno, the current initiative towards having a Savannah State would be the sixth in the series. The first serious requests were made in 1989, 1991, 2014, 2021 and now in the year 2025. Others like Ogoja and Katagum have longer history.

The yearning for a new state ordinarily should be a welcome development for both mother and baby – the new and the old entities. Given the primordial considerations that govern politics and the winner-takes- all syndrome, people tend to feel that their interests can be better catered for through a polity in which they have a voice. This may be misplaced or even an anathema to democratic tenets, but it is the reality of Nigeria politics, all the same.

In Nigeria, it would seem that, only through state creation would development be devolved to the grassroots. Imagine, Your Excellency, if such towns like Damaturu, Gombe, Jimeta-Yola, Jalingo, and Bauchi were still local government headquarters under either the North East state that was created in 1967. Or their plights and pace of development under defunct Borno, Gongola, and Bauchi. Consider the universities, the polytechnics, the specialist hospitals, the airports, and the urban transformations that come with being a state in Nigeria. These seems to be the attraction. So when people agitate for Savannah State, it doesn’t mean they love current Borno less, but they appreciate development more. Not many might appreciate this subtle nuances, but that’s the bottom line.

Some state governments understood the raison d’tre of the demand for the curving out of additional states from the existing ones. Bauchi government accorded the Katagum State movement the necessary support. Ogun State did the same thing and more, by “allowing” the Awujale of Ijebu land to take his request for Ijebu State to Aso Rock in Abuja. Even Kano State never stood in the way of Tiga or Gari state movements .This brotherly support seems to be lacking on the part of Borno power brokers. The last outing by the Savannah State Movement was almost marred by the subterranean influence of the government. For, it will beat imagination for a deputy speaker of Borno State Assembly, an expected beneficiary of the new state ,to rise up and voice the fact that Borno State was not interested in having a new state. People who know the working of government and politics understand the gentleman was acting on a script, based on misplaced fears.

A new state in Borno is going to be a win-win development. The stock shall be left with 19 LGAs. A number far higher than Abia 17, Bayelsa 8, Cross Rivers 18, Ebonyi 13, Edo 18, Ekiti 16, Enugu 17, Gombe 11, Kwara 16, Nasarawa 13, Ondo 18, Plateau 17, Taraba 16, Yobe 17, and Zamfara 14. In terms of economic dispositions, the border economies with Niger, Chad, and Cameroon present huge opportunities for trade and commerce. The economic potential of the Lack Chad and its basin are equally enormous. Furthermore, should the Southern part of Borno state move away, the residual manpower left behind would be more than that of Zamfara, Kebbi, and even Bayelsa at the point of creation in 1991, including population size which is estimated to 3.5 million. Maiduguri, the state capital, has an unsuitable stock of physical infrastructure that can drive development in the foreseeable future.

The Savannah counterpart shall be a state comprised of 9 LGAs with a population that is above two (2) million. It’s going to be a state in the league of Bayelsa with 8 LGAs and slightly less than Gombe and Ebonyi with 11 and 13 Councils respectively. It would be statesmanly for His Excellency to lend support to the people’s legitimate aspiration, for whatever its worth. In the same vein, an unambivalent posture by the state would free the traditional rulers in Southern Borno from the tight corner they normally found themselves anytime there is a state creation exercises on the horizon. They are usually caught between their subjects, who were largely pro state crreation and the state government’s tacit disapproval. A disposition that is unnecessary given the fact that such exercises are guided by Constitutional provisions.

As for the Savannah state, if it all happens, you would have gotten rid of a “restive” segment of your polity for good. Before too long, the teething problems of the Savannah state shall come to the fore unless the pioneer leadership happens to be a visionary one. And also a just one, in the light of the region’s diversity. But that’s going to be their cup of tea, Your Excellency, not yours.

In the light of the foregoing, let the Borno state government lend its support to the Savannah State Movement (SSM). After all, the euphoria so generated could just turn out to be diversionary move by the National Assembly away from the crushing economic hardships Nigerians are currently facing.

The state Deputy Governor, His Excellency Umar U. Kadafur, Senator representing Borno South, House of Representatives members Hons. Mukhtari Betara, Midala Balami Usman, and Jaha, along with their counterparts in the State Assembly, are kindly called upon to heed the yearnings of the people to have their memorandum on state creation pushed. They should forge a bi-partisan front to engage with the government to allow the region’s aspiration to play out. Besides, there is a popular adage that says that “the only bad request is the one that is never made.” Or rather “the only bad desire is the one that is never expressed” Let the request be and be supported too.

SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

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Two Missing, Five Injured in Bayelsa Boat Mishap

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Two Missing, Five Injured in Bayelsa Boat Mishap

By: Zagazola Makama

Security agencies have launched a search operation for two missing persons following a boat accident on the Ekewe River in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area.

Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that the incident occurred on March 15 at about 11:49 a.m. when an Enisco Security Boat, powered by a Suzuki 250 Outboard Engine and driven by one Samson Notice, collided with a hand-pulled wooden canoe carrying seven passengers, including children.

Five of the passengers sustained varying degrees of injuries and are currently receiving treatment at the Ekewe Community Clinic, while two individuals remain unaccounted for.

Police officers visited the accident scene, and the driver of the security boat has been taken into custody while the boat has been impounded.

Authorities have assured that an intensive search operation is ongoing to locate the missing victims.

Two Missing, Five Injured in Bayelsa Boat Mishap

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FCT Remains Calm as Police Recover Stolen Vehicle, Investigate Multiple Incidents

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FCT Remains Calm as Police Recover Stolen Vehicle, Investigate Multiple Incidents

By: Zagazola Makama

Security situation remains relatively calm and peaceful, with no major incidents within the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, Zagazola reported.

However, Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that the FCT police is currently investigating several incidents, including vehicle theft, homicide, kidnapping, and armed robbery.

On March 15, 2025, at about 2115hrs, one Samson Eriba of Life Camp reported the theft of his official Ford Ranger vehicle with FCTA registration number 08A 13 CT, which was taken from Bamboo’s Garden, Kado Life Camp. Upon receiving the report, police detectives deployed digital forensic tools, leading to the recovery of the vehicle at Toll Gate, Kaduna State. Investigation is ongoing.

In another development, the police arrested one Nobu Ebubechi Daniel of Waru-Apo for allegedly causing the death of a man following a dispute at a Point-of-Sale (POS) stand in Utako. The incident occurred on March 14, 2025, when the suspect allegedly pushed the victim, John Abdul Malik, causing him to hit his head on the ground. He was rushed to the National Hospital, where he was later confirmed dead. The suspect is currently in police custody undergoing interrogation.

The decomposed body of Yuda Garba, the village head of Dagachi Hamlet, who was kidnapped on March 11, 2025, has been found in a bush at Takula, Kagarko LGA of Kaduna State, near the Nomadic Forest and Kuyeri, FCT.

The police, in collaboration with community members, recovered the body, which was positively identified by relatives. Efforts are ongoing to rescue other abducted victims unharmed.

On March 16, 2025, at about 2300hrs, police received a distress call from Earl Vent Estate, Apo, where a security guard, Adamu Usman, confronted a suspected robber who had been stealing aluminum windows from the estate. In the altercation, the guard inflicted multiple machete wounds on the suspect, who later died at the National Hospital. The police have launched an investigation into the incident.

“Further updates on these investigations will be communicated in due course, “ said the sources.

FCT Remains Calm as Police Recover Stolen Vehicle, Investigate Multiple Incidents

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Police Arrest NSCDC Officer Over Shooting Incident in Lagos

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Police Arrest NSCDC Officer Over Shooting Incident in Lagos

By: Zagazola Makama

The Nigerian Police Force in Lagos has arrested a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) officer, Abah Gabriel, over the alleged shooting of a man in Ikorodu.

Police sources told Zagazola Makama that the incident occurred on March 15, 2025, at about 0900hrs at 3ple Hotel, Adamo, Ikorodu.

It was gathered that Gabriel, a Chief Corps Assistant attached to the Arms Squad Department of the NSCDC in Lagos, was on duty at the hotel when he allegedly had an altercation with one Imole Oyewole, 32.

Oyewole had visited the hotel, allegedly intending to smoke hard drugs on the premises. The dispute escalated, leading Gabriel to shoot Oyewole in the back of his left leg, causing him to fall unconscious.

The sources said upon receiving a distress call, police tactical operatives swiftly mobilized to the scene, documented the incident, and rescued the victim. Oyewole was rushed to Alheri Hospital, Adamo, Ikorodu, where he is currently receiving treatment.

The NSCDC officer was immediately taken into custody, and his AK-47 rifle with breech number 39246 was recovered as an exhibit.

The Lagos State Commandant of the NSCDC has been contacted regarding the incident.

Police Arrest NSCDC Officer Over Shooting Incident in Lagos

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