By Henry Umoru

ABUJA — A public affairs commentator and national analyst, Maximus Progress, has described the agitation for the creation of Anioma State as a collective struggle for a shared future, urging stakeholders to view the issue beyond party politics and individual ambition.

Progress said the aspiration for Anioma State predated Senator Ned Nwoko’s current political position and should not be reduced to his political career.

In a statement issued on Saturday, he said the agitation was a collective dream encompassing issues of history, identity, representation, development and the future of the Anioma people.

According to him, the aspiration had been pursued by different individuals and groups over several years, while the current push had received renewed legislative attention with Nwoko placing the issue prominently within the ongoing constitutional amendment process.

He said, “There are causes that belong to individuals, and there are causes that belong to generations. The creation of Anioma State belongs to the second category.

“Anioma State creation is not a struggle for one man, one party, or one political camp. It is a collective struggle for the general good of all Anioma people, present and future generations alike. It is about development, representation, fairness, identity, and access to opportunities that we have been denied for decades.”

Progress said attaching the aspiration solely to the personality of the politician currently championing it could undermine the broader significance of the issue.

He said, “Anioma State is not supposed to be Ned Nwoko’s state. It is supposed to be a state for the people of Anioma.

“Political office is temporary. Political parties change. Governments come and go. Individuals who occupy positions of influence eventually leave those positions.

“But the consequences of constitutional decisions can remain for generations. This is why the Anioma question deserves to be discussed beyond the boundaries of party politics and individual ambition.”

He said proponents of the state creation had, among other things, linked the agitation to the need to bring government closer to the people and establish a stronger institutional platform for addressing developmental needs.

Progress noted that state creation could affect political representation, administrative structures, allocation of public resources and the capacity of communities to pursue development priorities through a more focused governmental structure.

He, however, said such issues required serious examination rather than being reduced to political slogans.

On Anioma’s cultural and historical identity, Progress said the debate over state creation also involved questions of recognition, belonging and political representation.

He acknowledged that there were differing views within Anioma on how the proposed state should relate to the wider South-East and how its identity should be defined.

“Those differences should be acknowledged as part of a democratic conversation,” he said.

“The existence of disagreement does not make the aspiration less important. It simply means that a matter of such consequence requires dialogue, evidence and broad participation.”

Progress also stressed the need to consider the interests of future generations in the debate.

He said the reference to “present and future generations” was important because constitutional decisions made today would affect people who had yet to enter public life.

“The real question, therefore, is not simply who is championing Anioma State today. The question is: What kind of political, economic and administrative future should Anioma’s children inherit tomorrow?

“That is a question no political party can permanently own,” he said.

On Nwoko’s role, Progress said recognising Anioma State as a collective aspiration did not diminish the senator’s contribution to advancing the issue.

“A person can champion a cause without claiming ownership of it. That distinction is particularly important in a matter that has existed for decades,” he said.

He added that if the current legislative effort succeeded, the achievement should be seen as the culmination of the efforts of generations of Anioma people, including previous leaders and groups that had kept the aspiration alive.

“Senator Nwoko’s role, therefore, can be viewed within that longer historical continuum: a present custodian of an old aspiration,” he said.

Progress further urged stakeholders to keep the issue above partisan politics, saying the future of Anioma should not be determined solely by whether an individual belongs to the APC, PDP or another political platform.

He said political parties and alliances would change, but the people would remain.

He called for the involvement of traditional institutions, community leaders, professionals, young people, women, civil society organisations and other citizens in shaping the conversation on the proposed state.

“Anioma State is bigger than any single political ambition. It is a conversation about history. It is a conversation about identity. It is a conversation about representation. It is a conversation about development. And above all, it is a conversation about the future,” Progress said.

He added that while Nwoko had placed the issue prominently on the legislative agenda, “the Anioma dream must never become the property of one man. It belongs to the people.”