Supreme Court Halts Ceding of 17 Oil Wells to Imo State

By Alex Enumah

The Supreme Court on Wednesday restrained the federal government and its agencies from ceding 17 disputed oil wells located at Akri and Mbede to Imo State.

The action of the apex court was pursuant to a request by Rivers State, which is also laying claims to the ownership of the two communities the oil wells are located.

The Rivers State Government had dragged the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and the Attorney General of Imo State before the Supreme Court praying for a declaration that the boundary between Rivers State and Imo State, as delineated on Nigeria administrative map 10, 11 and 12 editions and other maps bearing similar delineations are inaccurate, incorrect and do not represent the legitimate and lawful boundaries between Rivers and Imo States.

However, pending the hearing of the substantive suit, Rivers through its Attorney General had, in an application, prayed the court for an order of injunction restraining the federal government from surrendering the affected oil wells to Imo State, a request which was accordingly granted.

Delivering ruling in the ex-parte application argued by Emmanuel Ukala (SAN) in the apex court chambers, the court restrained the AGF and the AG of Imo State from taking any further action on the ownership of the disputed 17 oil wells till the ownership disputes surrounding them are resolved.

The apex court also barred the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and the Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) and the office of the Accountant General of the Federation from approving, implementing or giving effect in any manner to a letter from RMAFC office, with reference number RMC/O&G/47/1/264 of July 1, 2021, which cancelled the equal sharing of proceeds from the 17 oil wells by Rivers and Imo States.

The apex court subsequently fixed September 21, 2021 for hearing of the substantive matter.

The plaintiff in the main suit is seeking a declaration that as far as Nigeria’s administrative map 10, 11 and 12 editions and other maps bearing similar delineations relate to the boundaries between Rivers and Imo, the said maps are unlawful and void and cannot be relied on to determine the extent of the territorial governmental jurisdiction of Rivers State and to determine the revenue accruing to Rivers State from the Federation Account, including the application of the principle of derivation and other revenue allocation principles as contained in the 1999 Constitution.

It further applied that the Supreme Court declare that the correct instrument maps and documents, to be relied on in determining the boundary between Rivers and Imo States are those used by the plaintiff in delineating the boundary line between Rivers and Imo States.

The plaintiff also sought a declaration that all the oil wells within Akri and Mbede communities are wrongly attributed to Imo State and that they are all oil wells within the territory of Rivers State and form part of Rivers State and that it is only Rivers that is entitled to receive the full allocation of the distributable revenue from the oil wells on the basis of the 1,390 derivation as contained under section 162 of the 1999 Constitution.

Rivers therefore sought an order of mandatory injunction directing the AGF to calculate, to its satisfaction, and refund to it all revenue that have been wrongly attributed to or paid to Imo State on account of the limit or extent of their territories, including earnings due to it from revenue derived from Akri and Mbede oil wells.

The plaintiff also sought an order of injunction directing the AGF to withdraw from circulation its administrative map 10, 11 and 12 editions and to refrain from relying on any of the said maps for the purpose of determining the boundary between Rivers and Imo States.

Rivers also applied for another order of mandatory injunction directing the AGF to produce administrative map bearing the correct boundary between Rivers and Imo States.

A sum of N500,000,000 was also sought as cost of prosecuting the case.