Historians and archaeologists have presented to us what is today
regarded as part of the story of origin and existence of the area
called Ebonyi State and its people. In the Memorandum for the creation
of EBONYI STATE, submitted by the People of Old Abakaliki Province to
the State Creation, Local Government and Boundary Adjustment
Committee” in January 1996, the history of how Ebonyi people came to
live in the present area called Ebonyi state was vividly stated in the
document to convince the Committee and the then Military government,
why it was imperative to create the state. It is important we
reproduce the paper as presented to enable us present our argument
properly in this piece. The document reads in part:
“EBONYI area, comprising the entire people of the old Abakaliki
Province in the Old Abakaliki and Afikpo Divisions, is inhabited by an
ethnic group of people with common cultural heritage and affinity.
They are agrarian in nature and have been known for their age long
struggle for survival as one political entity. Historical antecedents
and archaeological discoveries reveal that Afikpo was occupied by the
pre-historic ‘Egu’ and ‘Nkalu’ Igbo groups who merged and got
assimilated by other immigrant Igbo groups from the South Eastern
Cross River Basin. Some of these groups moved northwards to parts of
Abakaliki area. One of the early settlers in Ezza area was Ekuma Enyi,
who hailed from the Northern Afikpo village of Ibii. Legend has it
that he married Ezekuna and the couple had two off-springs Noyo and
Nodo. Noyo founded Ikwo and Nodo founded Izzi. Some Ezza groups moved
eastward to Ngbo and found Ezza Ngbo, while the population pressure
and adventure led to some of the pre-historic natives of Afikpo to
settle and found Nkalagu.
The creation of the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria led to the
emergence of a 24 Provincial Administration structure for Nigeria in
- One of those Provinces in the defunct Eastern Nigeria was the
Old Ogoja Province, and then made up of:
Ogoja Division, Obudu Division, Ikom Division, Obubra Division,
Abakaliki Division and
Afikpo Division with its Administration Headquarter in Ogoja.
Following a new administrative arrangement that came into being in
1959, the last three divisions, i.e. Obubra, Abakaliki and Afikpo were
constituted into a new province, known as Abakaliki province with its
administrative headquarter at Abakaliki. The new Abakaliki provincial
administration spanned from 1959 to 1967 when the 12 States structure
replaced the old regional and provincial systems in Nigeria. Under the
new arrangement, Obubra division was annexed to then South Eastern
State (now Cross River and Akwa Ibom States) while Abakaliki and
Afikpo Divisions became part of East Central State, an amalgamation of
the Old Onitsha, Enugu, Owerri and Umuahia Provinces.
It is essential to observe that with subsequent State creation
exercises in 1975 and 1991; Owerri Province became Imo State, Umuahia
Province became Abia State, Onitsha Province became Anambra State,
Enugu Province became Enugu State, while Abakaliki Province was split
into three parts.Thus, Obubra Division was joined to Cross River
State. Abakaliki Division was joined to Enugu State, Afikpo Division
was joined to Abia State
The petition for a State, not necessarily Ebonyi as is constituted and
called today, in the area started in 1957 after our leaders and
representations to the Wilink’s Commission that was appointed by the
Colonial Administration to enquire into the fears of minorities and
the means of allaying them. The request for the creation of Ebonyi
State is revulsion towards felt neglect in the provision of basic
social and infrastructural facilities within the existing political
structure. The first symptoms of such a reaction are traceable to
1957, when the people of Abakaliki and Afikpo Divisions, now Ebonyi
State, presented a written memorandum and gave oral evidence before
the Wilink’s Commission. That Commission noted on page 47 in chapter 7
of its report that;
“We are left however with no doubt that in this corner of the region;
there is a feeling of neglect and wish for a greater share in roads,
schools, hospitals and water supplies.”
While it cannot be argued that the subsequent establishment of the new
provincial structure throughout Nigeria was an attempt to assuage the
fears of minorities, the emergent political structure appeared to have
satisfied the yearnings of not only the minority groups but of most
Nigerians. It is on record that the Former Divisions of Abakaliki and
Afikpo, that had been clamouring to be re-constituted into Ebonyi
State, made its greatest stride in education, agricultural production,
and healthcare delivery and in all aspects of development during the
era of provincial administration, until the creation of the 12 States
in 1967. The subsequent political arrangements had the effect of
disintegrating a culturally homogenous people, marginalizing their
numerical strength in their new-found alignments and reducing them to
insignificant minorities.
Our people protected and demanded their own State before the Justice
Irikefe Panel on the creation of new States in 1975. The 1975 State
Creation exercise failed to address our problem and rather proceeded
to balkanize and split Abakaliki Province, where our total identity as
a people and our self-determination and progress were completely
submerged in the Old Onitsha and Owerri Provinces. This development
did not dampen our people’s resolve. Hence in November 1980, another
memorandum for the creation of Ebonyi State was presented to the
National Assembly of the defunct Second Republic. The Committees on
States creation of both the House of Representatives and the Senate
recommended independently the creation of Ebonyi State in the event of
future States in Nigeria.
During the 1981 States Creation exercise and despite our renewed
request and favourable reports by the Justice Irikefe Panel of 1976
exercise and approval for the creation of Ebonyi by the Federal House
of Representative and the Senate in 1981, Ebonyi State was not
created. The 1987 exercise failed also to create Ebonyi State.
In 1991, the erstwhile Babangida Administration appreciated the case
for the creation of Ebonyi State as being over due. Practical steps
were, indeed taken towards its actualization. But the request had to
be stepped down at the last minute to enable the Igbos have not one
but two State, namely, Enugu and Abia. It was then the consensus of
the Igbo people that in any subsequent State creation exercise, the
Igbos would lend total support to the creation of Ebonyi State.
The 1991 exercise saw the eventual metamorphosis of the Old Onitsha
and Owerri Provinces into four States, with Enugu and Anambra States
from Old Anambra State; and Imo and Abia States from Old Imo State,
with the Old Abakaliki Province still without its own corporate
identify.
The justification and demand for Ebonyi State continued with renewed
vigour and intensity through the 1994/95 National Constitutional
Conference and subsequent 1995/96 Chief Arthur Mbanefo led State
Creation, Local Government and Boundary Adjustment Committee. During
this period, the last phase of the struggle for the creation of Ebonyi
State, our leaders, despite the odds but with the goodwill left behind
by H.R.H. Ezeogo (Elder) Dr. Akanu Ibiam Grand Patron of Ebonyi State
Movement, laboured assiduously with commitment and determination until
the birth of Ebonyi State was proclaimed by the Head of State and
Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, Late General Sani Abacha, on October 1st, 1996.
Now that the objective and prize of this long struggle has been
achieved, the future orderly and sustainable development of the State
remains primarily a challenge they must accept willingly, having
happily come to the Promised Land, end of the journey and with their
destiny firmly in their palms”.
This short history is a testimony to the fact that Abakaliki bloc
alone cannot make up Ebonyi state. Afikpo bloc is principal part of
the state and citizens of the state from the zone played very vital
role in the creation of Ebonyi and have been playing key role in the
development of the state. If the Abakaliki bloc had produced the
governor of the state for the past 16 years, is it not natural that
the South should have the opportunity to produce the governor of the
state in 2015. If the Labour party could pick both Governorship
candidate and running mate from Abakaliki bloc without consideration
to the south, is it not a sign that if the party wins the election,
the people from Ebonyi South should forget about their wellbeing in
Ebonyi state or be ready to be pushed out by the Labour government.
How else would one explain that a party that is genuinely seeking
office in a state like Ebonyi will totally remove the Southern zone
from its political equation and power balance. The document quoted
above clearly stated that Ebonyi was created out of “the goodwill left
behind by H.R.H. Ezeogo (Elder) Dr. Akanu Ibiam Grand Patron of Ebonyi
State Movement, who laboured assiduously with commitment and
determination until the birth of Ebonyi State was proclaimed by the
Head of State and Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, Late General Sani Abacha, on October 1st,
1996”.
In this era when the world is preaching peaceful co-existence of
people, the Labour party in Ebonyi is creating division and
disharmony. It is noteworthy that all the political parties (PDP,
APGA. APC) that have governorship candidates for the forthcoming
elections in the state have their governorship and running mates from
either Abakaliki bloc or Afikpo area except Labour Party which
portends great danger to the peaceful co-existence of Ebonyi people
and the future of the State.
As argued elsewhere, the question of Ebonyi South producing the next
governor has nothing to do with Dave Umahi. Engr Umahi who is the
current deputy governor of Ebonyi state may be a “Devil or Saint”, but
the issue at stake is equity, justice, sense of belonging and
fairness. Democracy is no doubt a game of number, but if there is no
understanding, consensus, political party participation and
compromises as part of the variables that determine power equation and
balance of power in a democratic system, people like Goodluck Jonathan
from his small Otuoke village would never have dreamt of being
Prsident of Nigeria. Ebonyi is too small to be torn apart by politics
of acrimony and division, those who are fanning the embers of disunity
today may not be there tomorrow to reap the disastrous consequence. We
must act right and protect the future of our dear state. It is
encouraging and gratifying that majority of the political stakeholders
in Ebonyi cut across the 13 Local Government Areas of the state have
embraced the need for peaceful co-existence and given their support to
the flag bearer of the PDP in the governorship election of 11th April,
2015, Engr. Dave Umahi. It shows that the true Ebonyians recognize
that indeed it is On EQUITY we stand.
