Why state of origin should be abolished in Nigeria – Mark

Senate President, Senator David Mark, on Monday said that time has come for the country to shift from the syndrome of state of origin and embrace state of residence.

He said that immediate elimination of state of origin and enthronement of state of residence would go a long way to cement relationship in the country.

Mark spoke to journalists in Quebec, Canada, after the opening ceremony of the 127th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly, with the theme “Citizenship, identity, linguistic and cultural diversity in a globalised world.”

He noted that one of the issues that would be addressed at the on-going constitution review is a shift from state of origin to state of residence.

He wondered why a person who has lived in a particular place for 20 years performing all necessary civic responsibilities could not become an indigene of the area.

He said, “You should know that one of the issues we’ve been discussing in Constitution amendment is shift from state of origin to state of residence because it is an important issue.

“You are resident in a place for 20 years and still, they don’t take you as part and parcel of that place.

“I think it’s a difficult task but in my candid opinion, I think if we have an open mind and we approach it from a nationalist perspective, rather than a small, clannish perspective, I think we would get it right.

“Let’s forget the business of state of origin and go to state of residence.

“Once you are resident in a place and you perform your civic responsibilities for the period, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t benefit, provided of course you don’t claim dual residency.

“Some Nigerians may be very clever. They would come from Ondo State and are resident in Benue, when the benefits of Benue are not commensurate with their expectations, they shift to Ondo State.

“We can’t have that. Once you take a particular area, you should just be a part and parcel of that particular state.”

He described the theme of the conference as extremely relevant.

The theme of the conference, he said, is not “just international, it is also national because that is the only way we can domesticate and implement the theme.”