On Friday, February 7, 2025, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, shared an important update about the 30 proposals for new states. He said none of the proposals met the requirements of the Constitution, specifically Section 8, which is needed to create a new state.
Kalu explained that while the National Assembly hasn’t yet made a decision on the proposals, the process must follow strict rules. To create a new state, the Constitution says there must be a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate, the House of Representatives, state houses of assembly, and local governments.
He added that the National Assembly is dedicated to following the rules and is encouraging people who submitted proposals to resubmit them once they meet all the constitutional guidelines.
“We are the people’s parliament. We are not taking any position on the issue of creation of states. We have heard a lot of people giving different stories about the letter that was read,” Kalu said.
He also explained that many requests for new states were received during the Ninth Assembly, some through private bills and others through memoranda. In this current Tenth Assembly, 30 proposals have been submitted – not 31, as one was repeated.
Kalu continued, “As we speak, none of these 30 proposals have met the requirements of Section 8, and that’s why we’re telling Nigerians that these applications are not valid right now.”
He concluded by saying, “You have until March 5 to fix the issues with your state creation applications so that we can properly consider them.”
