Reports say the National Assembly has received requests from several states for additional local government areas, meant to spread development and bring representation closer to the grassroots. As I read this, one question troubled me: why are we, the Wakirike, silent?
This should have been our moment. For years, Okrika people have asked for our own LGA, so that we can have proper representation and autonomy and speak to our own needs and development. Port Harcourt South is the answer we have long wanted, yet it is nowhere on the table.
I believe we are being treated unfairly in the city we call home. Both the local and state governments continue to marginalise the Okrika-speaking indigenous communities in Port Harcourt. All three government-recognised traditional stools in Port Harcourt City LGA are from Ikwerre extraction, while our own stools still await recognition, despite repeated notices to the Chieftaincy Ministry.
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Consider Ward 20. Its people are of Okrika extraction, and it is about five times larger than most wards in the state. It has the highest number of eligible voters in Rivers State, yet it has remained one ward since 1999.
It has never produced a local government chairman or a National Assembly member from Port Harcourt. I ask plainly: what offence has the Okrika man committed to be treated as a second-class citizen on his own land?
It troubles me even more that the Ikwerre are seeking six additional LGAs, and their request has been acknowledged by the National Assembly, while ours is not even on the menu.
We cannot afford to stay quiet. It is time for us to engage our lawmakers, build alliances, and mobilise support for federal recognition of our demand. We should press for Port Harcourt South LGA to be included in future constitutional changes. If we do, we can secure a better future for our people in a city of our own.
