2025 Midwest Achievers Award Search Begins
The Midwest Key-Senator Dahlton Ogieva Asemota
By Editorial Board
Senator Dahlton Ogieva Asemota (OBE), was a distinguished Federal Legislator and key advocate for the creation of Nigeria’s Mid-Western Region, is in the race to be posthumously honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award (Community Development), in recognition of his outstanding public service and dedication to national development—specifically for the creation of Midwest State.
Senator Dahlton Ogieva Asemota was not aligned strongly with a major political party, but he served as Senator for Benin Province in the Federal Senate after Nigeria’s independence in 1960. He was appointed by the Western Region as part of its representation in the federal legislature.
In March 1962, the Federal House of Representatives and Senate voted on the second Midwest motion — a legislative step necessary under the 1960 Constitution to allow a regional referendum on creating the Mid-Western Region. That motion passed convincingly (214–49).
When Chief Anthony Enahoro, then a leading advocate of the Midwest region and Vice President of the Action Group (AG), pressed Asemota to adopt his party’s position—which was initially cautious and oppositional to the creation of the new region, Asemota reportedly resisted and refused to act against the interests of his people even at potential personal political cost. That stand was influential in keeping the motion viable in the Senate.
Asemota’s political impact apart from organizing and consolidating the region-creation movement outside formal Senate debates, included being Chairman of Midwest United Front Committee (UFC) after the legislative approval of the Midwest motion, Asemota was appointed chairman at an all-party conference in Benin. This committee was formed to coordinate diverse political and ethnic interests around the Midwest demand, especially given divisions among Action Group members and others.
Asemota also chaired a broader Midwest Planning Committee that was created in September 1962, with representation from federal and regional legislators and community leaders, made up of 75-member committee, which oversaw detailed preparatory work for the referendum and eventual regional formation.
Asemota’s strong community and political leadership quality was primarily responsible for achieving legislative approval and managing political tensions that led to that epical vote. He was also able to overcome opposition and party politics, even as some Action Group figures—including Enahoro, attempted to alter the motion to exclude key areas (like Akoko-Edo, Warri, and Western Ijaw) or add unrelated conditions, but the motion nonetheless passed.
Asemota’s stance and the work of allied politicians helped resist efforts to derail the region’s definition, and the Mid-Western Region was eventually created in 1963 following a referendum. It comprised what are today Edo State and Delta State, a major milestone in Nigeria’s federal structuring.
For Asemota’s Legacy and leadership in the legislative vote and as chair of key committees, he became a central—but under-recognized figure in the Midwest creation movement.
Senator Dahlton Ogieva Asemota died in 1963, shortly before the formal realization of the new region whose groundwork he helped lay.
His contribution bridged parliamentary action and grassroots—political—alliance—building, an example of legislative statesmanship in early Nigerian federal politics that is missing today.
