The civil society body further called on the National Boundary Commission to update official maps …
By TheInvestigator
The Cross River State Civil Society Network has thrown its weight behind Governor Bassey Otu in the renewed dispute over the ownership of 76 oil wells and 239 newly identified oil wells between Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State, urging the Federal Government to revalidate Cross River’s status as a littoral and oil-producing state.
In a press statement issued in Calabar after a peaceful walk to mark this year’s World NGO Day, on February 27, 2026, and signed by its chairman, Leader Ben Usang, the network commended the state government’s efforts to secure relisting as an oil-producing state eligible for the 13 per cent derivation from the Federal Government. The group described the stoppage of derivation payments following the 2012 Supreme Court judgment as a “grave social injustice” against the people of Cross River.
The dispute follows the submission of a report by an inter-agency committee set up by President Bola Tinubu to investigate oil well ownership disputes across affected states. According to the civil society coalition, the committee confirmed 67 new oil wells in undisputed Cross River maritime territory in 2024 and later identified 239 additional wells in the Cross River estuary, excluding the 76 wells previously under contention.
The group argued that the 2012 judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria did not fully account for developments following the ceding of parts of the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon after the ruling of the International Court of Justice. It maintained that Western Bakassi, including Dayspring 1 and 2 and Kwa Islands, remained within Nigeria and Cross River State, thereby conferring maritime territorial rights on the state.
The network also cited a hydrographic study conducted by the Nigerian Navy around the Cross River estuary, which it claimed supported the state’s maritime claims and contributed to federal approval for the Bakassi Deep Seaport project.
While accusing political leaders and cultural groups in Akwa Ibom of hardening their stance, the coalition called for a “win-win” resolution and urged restraint in public statements that could strain longstanding cultural and geographic ties between the two states.
The civil society body further called on the National Boundary Commission to update official maps to reflect post-Bakassi boundary realities and avoid what it described as abandonment of unceded Nigerian maritime territory. It also asked the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission to perform its duties “diligently and transparently” in determining derivation entitlements.
The group urged President Tinubu to act swiftly on the inter-agency committee’s recommendations, insisting that Cross River had been deprived of oil revenues for over a decade and could not afford further delay.
Reaffirming support for peaceful and lawful engagement, the network encouraged the state government to remain resolute and, if necessary, explore regional or international legal mechanisms, including the ECOWAS Court, while pursuing dialogue to restore what it described as wrongly withheld resources.
“Cross River State cannot wait any longer to start getting its due,” the statement read, as the group declared solidarity with the state government in its quest to regain oil-producing status and derivation revenue.
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