Agitators of Bori State Movement yelled when the president of the movement, Senator Cyrus Nunie Esq declared that Senator Magnus Abe told him that Bori State is a demand by the elderly and lack youths’ support hence it can not come to be.
Nunie, a Senator of the 2nd Republic, said this at the Bori State Movement’s first general meeting held in Bori at the Fini Nwika Conference Hall on Saturday February 9, 2013, when youths expressed their yearning support for Bori State Movement and thanked the elders who took the lead in the struggle.
Gbene-Nunie who observed the way youths pledged their support, said that he was confused whether he was alone in the struggle but added that from the way the youths expressed their delight for the struggle, he was convinced what Abe said did not hold water and assured the people that Bori State must be created if any state must be created in Nigeria.
He added that he was the only surviving 2nd Republic Senator in Rivers State from 1979-1983. “The words of our elders are of words of wisdom; the members of the National Assembly are wise young men”, he said, adding that as an old man, he hoped they would hear his plea and grant him the request for the creation of Bori State.
Nunie recalled that the demand for the creation of Bori State originated from the demand for the creation of Ogoni State which was necessitated by the marginalization of the Ogoni people by both the Federal Government and the Rivers State of Nigeria.
He pointed out that when an old man begs for a thing, the young people use to grant the old man’s request, adding that the demand for the creation of Bori State carries the oldest applicant for the creation of state in Nigeria, regretting that.
Many of his friends who applied for creation of states for their areas when he was also applying for the creation of Ogoni State, have been long granted requests.
Considering the viability of Bori State, he said that the resources from oil and gas which are yet untapped, the many oil wells which are already exposed in Bori State, the Industries which have been sited in Bori State like the oil Refinery in Eleme, the Afam, which provides electric power to the whole Nigeria and beyond within the proposed Bori State and the best sea port south of the Sahara or in West Africa at Onne are all within the State.
The Senator further said there are many areas where sea ports can still be established in the proposed state like, Kono waterfront in Khana LGA near Opobo and other development in the water ways in Opobo LGA.
In Andoni he pointed out possible dredging of fresh water which can lead to development of internal water-way from the sea to Kono and possible fresh fish industry and that University can be sited along Maakara river which shall be within the greater Bori City when the state is created.
He said an airport would be sited between Nyo-Khana down Oyigbo in the proposed Bori State.
The meeting was used to renew support for the Bori State creation by women and representatives of the seven Local Government Areas that form the Bori State.
The Secretary of the Movement, advised members of the National Assembly to make laws that will facilitate state creation in the country so that it will not seem as if that civilians can not create state when creation of state suppose to be dividends democracy. ###
Mene Gbarabe
