31/07/2025
76 OIL WELLS, GOVERNOR UMO ENO AND THE REST OF US
On the 17th March 2011 the Supreme Court, after two years of legal tango,
ordered the Akwa Ibom State Government to transfer to Rivers State 86 disputed oil wells with accruing revenues beginning from April, 2009.
Now, in a rather pretentious bid to settle a rift between the two states, President Obasanjo mamaged to convince ex-Governors of the states, Obong Victor Attah and Peter Odili, to sign an agreement technically conferred ownership of the disputed oil wells on Rivers State.
But upon assumption of office in 2007 the then Governor Godswill Akpabio studied the historical ownership of the said oil wells which was in favour of Akwa Ibom State and relied on that to protest against the said political arrangement in 2007, insisting that the National Boundary Commission must return the said oil wells to Akwa Ibom state, because they are within its region.
Following Akpabio’s contention, Governor Rotimi Amechi approached the Federal High Court to challenge the move, but lost. Dissatisfied he proceeded up to the apex court where his efforts finally yielded fruits albeit politically. By this time, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan had become President. Again, Akwa Ibom was robbed by the presidency through the apex court. This is crystal in the ratio of the court.
Thus, in the q***r wisdom of the supreme court per Justice Aloysius Katisna-Alu, Akwa Ibom was bound by the Obasanjo arrangement since its former governor was a signatory to the 31st October, 2006 agreement, where the 86 oil wells were yielded to Rivers state.
The CJN said: “It is not in dispute that this agreement was reduced into writing and dated 31st October 2006. It is exhibit AMBI. It is indeed embodied in the letter written by the then President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo.
“It can be seen clearly from this letter that the parties have voluntarily jettisoned Technical and Historical Solutions. This is so because these Solutions were considered at the meeting before opting for the Political Solution.
The parties faithfully implemented the terms of the agreement till the tail end of 2007 when Akwa Ibom unilaterally sought to rescind the agreement and commenced its agitation for the application of the Historical Solution."
He further held that “The plaintiff, Rivers, is the owner of the 86 oil wells by virtue of the political solution agreement between the plaintiff and the 1st defendant, Akwa Ibom, the terms of which are contained in exhibit AMBI and therefore entitled to be paid revenue derivable therefrom under the provisions of section 162 of the 1999 Constitution from April, 2009 till date and subsequently.
“The defendants are hereby directed by themselves and/or their appropriate agencies to forthwith compute and calculate all such sums of money accruing from 86 oil wells belonging to the plaintiff by virtue of the subsisting and biding political solution agreement which sums has since been unlawfully paid to the 1st defendant, Akwa Ibom, with effect from April, 2009 till date of this judgment and payment of all such sums to the plaintiff by the 1st defendant forthwith."
The question now is "why would the apex court in such a sui generis case prioritize political solution over historical and technical solution?"
As at the time of this judgment Akpabio who was famously one of the last man standing for late President Umaru Musa Yar'adua was still navigating his way into the heart and good books of President Jonathan. Hence, he didn't stand a chance against the Rivers - Bayelsa Presidency Cabal.
Responding to the judgment the then Governor Akpabio didn't mince words in accusing his predecessor Ex-Governor Victor Attah of selling out Akwa Ibom oil wells over his selfish political ambition instead of fighting for the right of the state.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after the Supreme Court judgment, the then state commissioner for Information and Re-orientation, Mr Aniekan Umanah, said “the political solution which the Supreme Court hinged its judgment was entered into by the government of Obong Attah and that was because he wanted to be in the good books of the government at that time. It was a decision that sold the future and fortune of the people of the state to its neighboring states because of the ambition of one man. Now the people of the state are the ones suffering because of the selfish desire of one man.
"We have it on good authority that former Governor Attah accepted the political solution offer because he wanted to please the power that be, and as proof that he was not supporting the presidential ambition of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who was angling to succeed former President Olusegun Obsanjo in 2007.
"It was a selfish way of finding solution to an issue that would have a direct effect on the lives and development of the people of the state, without any consideration.
“It was because of Attah’s alleged sponsorship of the presidential bid of Alhaji Atiku that the power that be then, decided to move against him by allocating most of the oil wells that belonged to Akwa Ibom State to Rivers as a way of cutting down his revenue, which he allegedly used in sponsoring Atiku’s presidential ambition,” he said.
Mr. Umanah then promised that ” the current administration will not be a party to any move by anybody to deny the people of Akwa Ibom State their rights and entitlements."
"We are currently studying the judgment and at the appropriate time, the position of government would be made public. We will surely go back to see how the political solution that was arrived at in 2004 was implemented before this judgment which is hinged on the 2004 political solution.” He added.
Ironically, in what would seem like the gods were all out against Akwa Ibom State, we'd barely healed from the trauma of lossing 86 oil wells to Rivers State when Cross Rivers State as if inspired by Rivers State approached the court to declare the 76 Oil wells ancillary to the Bakassi Peninsula theirs. This wells were originally 90 in number. And President Obasanjo in the same political court of arbitration where he coaxed Governor Attach to sign off the 86 wells to Rivers State had further coaxed him to sign off 14 out of 90 wells to Cross River State, which Attach complied. Apropos, Cross River were now demanding for the remaining 76.
In July 2012 the Supreme Court unanimously held that sequel to the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and that subsequent surrender of Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon; Cross River State was no longer a littoral state but a landlocked one without access to the sea. At the time both the current Governor of Cross River State Sen. Bassey Otu and his predecessor, Sen. Ben Ayade were at the Senate and the Senate Leader was also a Cross Riverian in the person of Sen. Ndoma Egba. All three of them whipped sentiments after the judgment, claiming that Akwa Ibom had over a thousand oil wells and that it was only fair that 76 Oil Wells were conceded to Cross River. Meanwhile, Gov. Godswill Akpabio at the time had pleaded with Cross River State Governor, Sen. Liyel Imoke, to have the matter settled out of court with a political resolution but they refused. After the judgment was delivered Gov. Akpabio offered to pay N500,000,000.00 monthly to Cross River State monthly but the Federal Government insisted that it would take up that responsibility by paying N500,000,000.00 ecological fund to Cross River State which it did albeit inconsistently.
Hon. Cletus Obum (former APC Presidential Campaign Committee member) confirmed this fact on live interview with Arise Television on Sunday 13th July 2025.
In fact, scared that the said judgment might stir the good people of Cross River State against Akwa Ibom community in Cross River State; Gov. Akpabio mobilized a delegation of the state government to Cross River State to negotiate the peace and safety and if expedient, the possible evacuation of our people should there be any violent out break against us. I was privileged to be part of that movement as a legislative aide to then Hon. Barr. Onofiok Akpan Luke. In fact, I mobilized the Akwa Ibom State Students Community in Cross River State by virtue of my Malabo Aluta status at the time. Some of us have been very active players and stakeholders in the Akwa Ibom State project.
But in February 2025, Gov. Bassey Otu publicly declared that the Federal Government of Nigeria was going to review the judgment of the Supreme Court on the 76 Oil Wells.
According to Hon. Cletus Obun the surveyor general of the federation, as well as the surveyors general of Akwa Ibom State and Cross River State together with their legal teams have jointly visited the said location of the wells and rigs where the distancing have been remeasured and remapped. He further stated categorically that the reports have been submitted to President Tinubu and that Gov. Umo Eno himself has come to agree that there was some technical hitch that misinformed the decision of the Supreme Court and is therefore ready to return to the table for President Tinubu to append his signature to the surrender of the 76 Oil Wells to Cross River State.
Surprisingly, Gov. Umo Eno who had initially claimed that the 76 Oil Wells issue had been settled for good has suddenly played mum on the matter. The same Governor who responded to Kenneth Okonkwo's mischief interview the very moment he landed on Akwa Ibom International Airport has not found good reason to address the good people of Akwa Ibom State on the trending conspiracy to have the 76 Oil Wells surrendered to Cross River State, not even after he held a close door meeting with the President, Senate President and two other senators of the state.
Members of Cross River State government are daily confirming the president's commitment to handing over the said oil wells to Cross River while members of Akwa Ibom State Government seem to be more interested in the chequered history of their so called ancestral lands of the Ibibios. And talking about history, it was an Ibibio Governor in the person of Obong Arc. Victor Attah who signed off the 86 Oil Wells to Rivers State and 14 out of 90 Oil Wells to Cross River State in pursuit of his selfish political agenda as alleged by Hon. Aniekan Umanah then. Now, it seems another Ibibio Governor is about to surrender the remaining 76 of the 90 Oil Wells to Cross River State as the price for his second term ticket under the All Progressives Congress. Ostensibly, it is the scions of the very people claiming sole ownership of Akwa Ibom State that are selling off the state and birth rights of their kith and kin for their personal *plates of porridge* without blinking an eye.
Truth be told, most of us Akwa Ibomites will be glad to handover the 76 Oil Wells to our sister state Cross River to boost their economic and of course the camaraderie between us. What we're against is the *Nicodemus and Judas* style of doing so without transparency and consultation with us.
Corollary, since Cross Riverians are claiming that Gov. Umo Eno *has agreed* to surrender the 76 oil wells to them and a section of Akwa Ibom stakeholders are equally accusing the same Governor of selling out the 76 oil wells for his personal interest methinks it is only meet that His Excellency Gov. Umo Eno comes out clean on this matter. Are we handing over the 76 Oil Wells to Cross River State or not? If the answer to this question is in the affirmative then what are the conditions? Is it a hostile political surrender, an act of sociopolitical trade by barter or outright charity?
Comr. Ewa Okpo Edmund
Public interest attorney, arbitrator and literati
Question?
Is this the truth?
AKSG
