By Admin
The Akwa Ibom State Government has dismissed renewed claims by the Cross River State Government regarding the ownership of 76 offshore oil wells, insisting that the matter was conclusively settled by the Supreme Court in July 2012 and cannot be revisited.
This reaction comes in the wake of reports suggesting that the Cross River State Government is pushing for a political resolution to the long-standing dispute, despite the apex court’s definitive ruling over a decade ago.
Addressing the issue during an interview on ARISE News Television Yesterday , the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah, urged the public to disregard what he described as “baseless claims and political distractions,” affirming that the Supreme Court’s judgment remains binding and irreversible.
“This is a settled matter. The Supreme Court, in July 2012, ruled on this issue and placed a permanent seal on it. That is the highest court in the land. Once the Supreme Court delivers judgment, it is final and cannot be appealed,” Umanah said.
He noted that Akwa Ibom State did not initiate the legal battle but was only a defendant in the suit filed by Cross River State against the Federal Government. He stressed that the apex court clearly ruled in favour of Akwa Ibom, stating that Cross River had no maritime boundary and, therefore, no legal claim to the oil wells.
“The plaintiff (Cross River) has no maritime territory since the cessation of Bakassi Peninsula in 2008. This position is based on legal facts, not sentiments. The matter is not only concluded, it cannot be reopened,” he added.
The Commissioner further described as misleading, any insinuation that a political resolution is underway, emphasizing that the matter is no longer subject to negotiation or administrative review, having been resolved in court.
He also used the platform to highlight key achievements under Governor Umo Eno’s administration, including projects under the ARISE Agenda such as road infrastructure, MSME support, agriculture, and youth empowerment initiatives.
Umanah pointed to the transformation of a ravine area into the ARISE Park in Uyo, as well as the ongoing Ibom Tropicana Hotel and the Oron Marine Resort, as signs of the state’s commitment to tourism development.
Commenting on the recent visit of Governor Eno, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, and other stakeholders from the state to President Ahmed Tinubu, Umanah said the meeting was strategic, aimed at attracting federal backing for projects such as the Ibom Deep Seaport and other infrastructure priorities.
Background
It would be recalled that the dispute over the 76 oil wells dates back to a political resolution brokered in 2006 by then President Olusegun Obasanjo, which temporarily allocated some offshore wells to Cross River. However, Cross River lost its status as a littoral state following the 2008 ceding of the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon, and the Supreme Court, in its 2012 judgment, ruled that the wells rightfully belonged to Akwa Ibom.
The court, led by then Chief Justice Dahiru Musdapher, held that the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) acted within the law in attributing the oil wells to Akwa Ibom, given the changed geographical and legal status of Cross River State.
Justice Clara Bata Ogunbiyi (then Adekeye) ruled that derivation revenues must be paid to the state with legitimate maritime boundaries, a condition no longer met by Cross River since the loss of Bakassi.
“The plaintiff, not being a littoral state and not having a maritime boundary, cannot lay claim to offshore oil wells. The reality of geography and international law must guide the allocation of resources,” the court had ruled.
