By Gbenga Akingbule
Member of the House of Representatives, Midala Usman Balami, representing Askira-Uba/Hawul federal constituency in Borno State, on Saturday, stated that the creation of the proposed Savannah State out of the present Borno State is most viable for Borno’s Development.
Gatekeepers News reports that Balami also revealed that should Savannah State were created, it would have relevant infrastructure to kick-start a fresh administration with less difficulty
Balami disclosed this while speaking to reporters during the House of Representatives Zonal Committee Public Hearing on the review of the 1999 constitution held at the Muhammadu Indimi Multipurpose Hall, University of Maiduguri, Borno State.
According to Balami, who is the only Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member in the House of Representatives from Borno State’s “If you look at all the states in the North-East, Borno State has the largest population; and it has 27 local government areas, which also is the highest number in the geopolitical zone.
“We want to ensure effective utilisation of resources in this country; and when we talk of that, the smaller the size of the component, the easier and more effective the management of the resources it is argued.
“So, for the people of Borno State, the creation of Savannah State is a win-win situation, because once Southern Borno has Savannah, Borno itself will have a population it can easily manage in terms of development, resource utilisation and even in terms of security.
“I want to say today to all lovers of democracy and to all citizens of Borno State that the agitation and yearning for the creation of Savannah State is a clarion call for all to support, whether you are from Northern, Central or Southern Borno.
“Because this is a constitution review, we must align it with the yearnings and aspirations of our people, which is the creation of Savannah State,” Midala said, assuring, “the yearning for the creation of Savannah State is not a yearning that goes against anybody in Borno State..
He argued that in the entire North-East, Southern Borno is the most deserving of state creation and should, therefore, be given Savannah State,” Balami said.
