A fresh controversy has erupted between Akwa Ibom and Cross River states over the control of 76 oil wells, with both governments adopting firm and uncompromising positions amid reports of a possible review of oil-producing status.
The dispute intensified following media claims that oil wells currently attributed to Akwa Ibom State could be “returned” to Cross River State based on a report submitted by a Federal Government Inter-Agency Committee to the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
However, Akwa Ibom State’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Uko Udom, has strongly dismissed the reports, describing them as speculative and constitutionally misleading.
“No Oil Well Has Been Ceded” – Akwa Ibom
Speaking during a press briefing at the Government House Conference Hall in Uyo, Udom clarified that what the RMAFC received on February 13, 2026, was merely a draft report — not a final decision, approved recommendation, or reallocation of oil wells.
According to him, the Commission itself has publicly stated that circulating claims do not reflect any final position.
The Akwa Ibom government anchored its position on two landmark Supreme Court judgments delivered in 2005 and 2012, which it insists conclusively settled the boundary and oil derivation dispute between the two states.
In Suit No. 124/1999, Cross River State had challenged Akwa Ibom over northern and southern boundary claims. While the Supreme Court ruled in Cross River’s favour regarding parts of the northern boundary in 2005, it dismissed the southern estuarine claims where the oil wells are located.
The apex court further held that the October 10, 2002 judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) — which ceded the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon — effectively removed Cross River’s seaward boundary.
In a subsequent ruling on July 10, 2012, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that Cross River was no longer a littoral state entitled to offshore derivation benefits.
Citing Section 235 of the 1999 Constitution, Udom stressed that Supreme Court decisions are final and binding on all authorities and persons across Nigeria.
“There is no higher court. There is no supervisory committee. There is no administrative override,” he declared, warning that no inter-agency committee or technical panel can alter or reinterpret a subsisting judgment of the apex court.
The state government maintained that all the oil wells in question lie within Akwa Ibom’s recognized maritime boundaries based on hydrographic coordinates and enforceable legal adjudications.
“We Will Not Be Denied” – Cross River
On the other hand, Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State struck a resolute tone while addressing supporters at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport in Calabar upon his return from Abuja.
Welcomed by government officials, political groups, youths, and market women, Otu declared that Cross River would no longer be denied its rightful place in Nigeria.
Reflecting on the state’s sacrifice in ceding Bakassi in the interest of national peace, the governor insisted that fairness and justice must prevail.
“The ceding of part of Bakassi was for the peace of the country. It was not for Cross River State to lose its oil well. We are full-fledged Nigerians. Nobody can deny us our rights. And that time has come,” Otu said.
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to its “People First” agenda and assured residents that Cross River’s future remains bright.
Legal Battle or Political Posturing?
At the heart of the renewed tension is the work of the Federal Government’s Inter-Agency Committee mandated to scientifically determine the precise location of oil and gas assets within Nigeria’s onshore and offshore boundaries.
While Cross River appears hopeful of being re-listed as an oil-producing state, Akwa Ibom insists that any action contradicting existing Supreme Court judgments would be unconstitutional, null, and void.
For now, the RMAFC has clarified that no final decision has been taken.
As both states stand their ground, the oil wells controversy is once again testing the delicate balance between constitutional finality, federal administrative processes, and the politics of resource control in Nigeria’s oil-rich South-South region.