By Ogunbayi Beedee Adeyemi October 30, 2025
adeyemi@ddnewsonline.com
The Bauchi State House of Assembly has passed and transmitted a landmark bill to the National Assembly, seeking ratification for the creation of 29 additional Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the state, effectively proposing to more than double the existing 20 councils to 49.
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The legislation, signed into law by Governor Bala Mohammed on Wednesday, represents a bold push for administrative decentralization amid Nigeria’s ongoing constitutional review. In a certified letter from Acting Deputy Clerk Musa Yerima to Senate Deputy President Barau Jibrin Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review the assembly emphasized that the new LGAs remain “inchoate” until federal endorsement under Section 8(5) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
“This printed impression has been carefully compared by me with the Bill passed by the Legislature and found to be a true and correctly printed copy,” Yerima affirmed in the transmittal document, underscoring compliance with Section 100(3) of the Constitution.
The bill, titled “A Bill to Provide for the Creation of 29 New Additional Local Government Areas in Bauchi State, 2025 (No. 45),” carves out the councils from existing ones to address long-standing demands for equitable representation and development in underserved regions. Schedule II lists the proposed entities as follows
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Existing LGA New LGAs Created
Bauchi Balma, Bauchi East, Bauchi West
Bogoro Beshongo, Bula, Burra
Dambam Chinade, Dagauda/Jalam, Disina
Darazo Galambi, Gwaram, Jamfalan
Dass Durru, Gudama, Lere
Ganjuwa Gwallaga, Kabaram, Kubdiya
Giade Lame Burra, Lere Burra, Lere Galambi
Itas/Gadau Lere Gwaram, Lere Jamfalan, Lere Kubdiya
Jama’are Lere Lame Burra, Lere Lere, Lere Lere Burra
Katagum Lere Lere Galambi, Lere Lere Gwallaga, Lere Lere Kabaram
Governor Mohammed, a PDP stalwart, hailed the move as a “game-changer for inclusive growth,” arguing it would enhance service delivery in agriculture, health, and education across Bauchi’s diverse ethnic tapestry home to Hausa, Fulani, Sayawa, and Gerawa communities. The state, with a population exceeding 7.5 million, has long grappled with infrastructural deficits in its Sudan-Sahel savanna zones.
Under Nigeria’s federal structure, LGA creation requires a two-thirds majority in the state assembly (achieved here), gubernatorial assent, and crucially, National Assembly legislation for inclusion in the Constitution’s First Schedule. Bauchi’s bid aligns with the ongoing 1999 Constitution amendment exercise, led by the National Assembly’s joint committees.
Assembly Speaker Abubakar Y. Suleiman, briefing reporters in Bauchi, expressed optimism: “This is about empowering the grassroots, not politics. We urge swift federal action to unlock federal allocations for these areas.” The transmittal arrives as the Senate resumes plenary on Thursday, potentially fast-tracking hearings amid similar requests from states like Oyo (35 new LGAs) and Osun (pending).
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Critics, however, question feasibility. Legal expert Prof. Auwalu Yadudu warned of fiscal strains: “Bauchi’s 20 LGAs already strain resources; 29 more could balloon recurrent costs without matching revenues.” The Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) echoed concerns, estimating ₦200 billion in startup needs for secretariats, staff, and equipment.
The initiative dovetails with President Tinubu’s advocacy for LGA financial independence, following the Supreme Court’s July 2024 ruling against joint state-federal accounts. Bauchi’s move could qualify the new councils for direct FAAC disbursements, projected at ₦50-70 billion annually per LGA once operational.
Politically, it bolsters Mohammed’s legacy ahead of 2027 polls, where PDP dominance faces APC incursions. Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II, in a recent Kano address, indirectly supported such reforms by calling for “devolved governance to curb central excesses.” Yet, opposition figures like APC’s Yusuf Abubakar decried it as “pre-election gerrymandering,” demanding a referendum.
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As Bauchi joins a national chorus over 200 proposed LGAs nationwide the National Assembly’s response will test federalism’s limits. For now, the bill’s journey from Bauchi’s chambers to Abuja’s hallowed halls symbolizes a quest for closer-to-home power in Africa’s most populous nation.
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