The House ad hoc committee on 1999 Constitution review has begun the exercise in Calabar, the Cross River State capital in furtherance of the resolution of the House of Representatives.
The South South zone B will hold in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital comprising of Edo, Delta and Bayelsa states while zone A comprising of Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River States converged on Calabar.
On arrival in Cross River state the leader of the review committee and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Kingsley Chinda, member representing Obio/Akpor federal constituency led the Constitution amendment committee to a courtesy call on the Obong of Calabar, his eminence, Edidem Expo Okon Abasi Otu V where the facts of the exercise were canvassed as his eminence enjoined the committee to do justice to the aspirations of Nigerians while committing to mobilising his subjects to make representations to the committee.
The Committee afterward proceeded to the Cross Rivers State government house on courtesy call .
Receiving the House delegation, the deputy governor Rt. Hon. Peter Odey canvassed support for the exercise but expressed concern on several limitations of state government particularly as it concerns authority to extract minerals which currently is within the exclusive preserve of the federal government.
According to Odey such tight grip disables states from mining right which hampers development and grassroot growth among others.
Nigerians from all walks of life attended the review centre making varied requests, presentations and submitted memos ranging from states creation, local council creation, non- local government creation, non states creation, severance from current states and inclusion in anticipated states in the event of their creations .
Meanwhile only citizens from Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross river states were assigned to submit memos to the committee.
States creation requests that include Bori state, Ogoja state, Atlantic state while local governments creation requests from Etung local government council in Cross Rivers to be split into three.
Odukpani local government council also articulate it’s desires to split into three just as Akpabuyo local government also of Cross River state sought for two more local government in addition to the existing one.
The Igede people from Benue state who occupy the present Obi/ Oju local governments in Benue state sought to be re-integrated with their kith and kin in Cross River State, the Abii, and Yakur and in the event of creation of Ogoja state, be domiciled in the new state.
Meanwhile the people of eastern Obollo were at loggerheads over creation of Obollo state but submitted memo all the same.
One common feature of all the requests made was the economic, geographical and social viability of the anticipated states ranging from big population data, requisite landmass, abundant human and mineral resources, common history e.t.c
In the spirit of gender balance different women groups canvassed for special seats for women focused NGOs , also calling for amendments of the Constitution to unbundle the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), exhaustion of pending litigations before swearing-in, creation of election tribunal for local government elections among other electoral reforms as well as creation of office of the auditor- general at the local government councils in the federation as well as the areas councils of the federal capital territory, Abuja.
Labour unions and Nigeria Union of Teachers( NUT) sought to be retained in the exclusive lists while customary and magistrate workers asked to be included within the meaning, context and interpretation of judicial office workers/ personnel.
