By: Eugene Upah (South South Digest)
The former Leader of the 7th Senate, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, SAN, has cleared the air regarding his stance on the controversial 76 oil wells lost by Cross River State to Akwa Ibom State, distancing himself from what he termed “deliberate misrepresentations” of his past legislative contributions.
In a strongly worded statement released on Saturday, the legal luminary and former Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), dismissed attempts to use selective quotes from his 6th Senate interventions to suggest unpatriotism to the state. He declared his “unequivocal and unambiguous” support for Governor Bassey Edet Otu’s administration in its mission to reclaim the state’s legitimate hydrocarbon assets.
Senator Ndoma-Egba clarified that while his past interventions were guided by the Constitution and international obligations at the time, significant advancements in maritime and geospatial knowledge now provide a much stronger evidentiary basis for Cross River’s claims.
“Since that period, Nigeria’s continental shelf geological rights have been further clarified,” Ndoma-Egba stated. He noted that new datasets have identified up to 245 surface well coordinates that demonstrate “reservoir continuity” within the Cross River Basin, proving that hydrocarbon accumulations are governed by geology, not political labels like “littoral or non-littoral.”
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria pointed out that the 2002 ICJ judgment was strictly about land and maritime boundaries and did not extinguish Cross River’s geological rights. He further argued that the 2008 “Oil Dichotomy Model Map,” which transferred the wells to Akwa Ibom, was a “unilateral administrative adjustment” rather than a judicial determination.
Commending Governor Otu for his “courage and institutional discipline,” Ndoma-Egba urged stakeholders to move past cheap propaganda. “Cross River State should not suffer perpetual economic penalties for diplomatic decisions taken at the federal level regarding Bakassi,” he asserted.
He concluded by reaffirming his commitment to the state’s cause, noting that technology has preserved his full Senate records, which reflect a consistent pursuit of equity and justice for the state and nation.
Read the statement Below 👇 👇:
“My attention has been drawn to recent attempts by certain individuals to deliberately misrepresent my contributions on the floor of the 6th Senate concerning the Bakassi Peninsula and the consequential loss of the 76 oil wells by Cross River State.
These misrepresentations, achieved through selective quotation and distortion of context, are aimed at blackmailing my person and creating a false impression of disloyalty to the Government and people of Cross River State.
I reject these insinuations in their entirety.
Let me state clearly, unequivocally, and without any ambiguity that I stand firmly and completely with His Excellency, Governor Bassey Edet Otu, the Government, and the good people of Cross River State in all lawful, constitutional, and institutional efforts to protect and advance our State’s legitimate interests in relation to Bakassi, the 76 oil wells, and all other hydrocarbon assets that are scientifically, geologically, and legally attributable to Cross River State.
The Bakassi matter is not one for political manipulation, cheap propaganda, or media sensationalism. It is a deeply sensitive, historical, territorial, humanitarian, and economic issue that has profoundly affected the dignity, livelihoods, maritime access, security, and long-term development prospects of Cross River State.
The loss of Bakassi resulted in the displacement of communities, contraction of our maritime frontage, loss of access to fishing grounds and navigational corridors, and severe economic dislocation. These realities continue to shape the developmental challenges of our State and must be addressed with seriousness, empathy, and institutional responsibility.
Throughout my years in the Senate, my interventions on Bakassi and resource derivation were guided by fidelity to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, respect for Nigeria’s international obligations, the imperatives of national unity, and the pursuit of equity and justice within our federal system.
My record shows consistent advocacy for fairness in revenue derivation, transparent boundary demarcation, and the protection of sub-national interests within the limits of the law. I will not be distracted by politically motivated narratives designed to sow division among our people.
It is important to clarify that any perceived difference between my contributions in the Senate at the time and my present position does not arise from any inconsistency of principle. Rather, it reflects significant advancements in scientific, geological, maritime, and geospatial knowledge that now provide a stronger evidentiary basis for Cross River State’s claims.
Since that period, Nigeria’s continental shelf geological rights have been further clarified and extended, with scientific delineation recognising the elongated continental shelf architecture across Nigeria’s estuarine systems, beginning from the mouth of the Cross River Estuary and extending across multiple sedimentary depocentres along the Gulf of Guinea.
The continental shelf and sub-surface petroleum systems do not terminate at administrative maritime boundaries; they exist as continuous geological formations governed by basin architecture, stratigraphy, and petroleum system dynamics.
Furthermore, new scientific datasets and inter-agency geospatial mapping exercises have identified up to 245 surface well coordinates and corresponding reservoir coordinates, many of which demonstrate basin-wide reservoir continuity within the Cross River Basin, the offshore transition zone, and transboundary geological structures extending towards the Cameroon sector.
These findings reinforce the established geological principle that hydrocarbon accumulations are controlled by sedimentary basin evolution, source rock kitchens, migration pathways, reservoir connectivity, and structural traps, rather than by political labels such as littoral or non-littoral status.
For the avoidance of doubt, the 2002 Judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) was strictly confined to the delimitation of land and maritime boundaries between Nigeria and Cameroon.
The Court did not determine any issues relating to oil wells, derivation entitlements, hydrocarbon ownership, or the internal continental shelf geology of Nigeria. It is therefore legally untenable to extend the ICJ judgment to extinguish Cross River State’s geological rights or petroleum interests within Nigeria’s sedimentary basins.
I also wish to state clearly that the administrative transfer of certain oil wells from Cross River State to Akwa Ibom State did not arise from any judicial determination. Rather, it flowed from the unilateral adjustment of Cross River State’s land boundary in favour of Akwa Ibom State in the 2008 Oil Dichotomy Model Map, an administrative framework that re-attributed derivation rights without the benefit of a conclusive, court-mandated, multi-agency scientific verification of coordinates, reservoir continuity, basin limits, and subsurface geological data. This underscores the need for transparent, technically rigorous, and institutionally coordinated processes in matters of resource attribution.
I commend Governor Bassey Edet Otu for the courage, clarity, and institutional discipline with which he is pursuing lawful and evidence-based processes to safeguard Cross River State’s interests.
The current efforts to rely on scientific verification of coordinates, geodetic surveys, bathymetric data, reservoir mapping, and inter-agency technical review represent the appropriate pathway for resolving complex derivation disputes in a modern, rules-based state.
I recall with pride my participation in the historic struggle for the creation of new states from the old Cross River State under the leadership of the late Dr. Okoi Arikpo, SAN. The creation of Akwa Ibom State was conceived as a framework for administrative efficiency, political inclusion, and shared prosperity.
It was never intended to result in the economic marginalisation or perpetual disadvantage of Cross River State. Cooperative federalism, equity, and mutual respect must continue to guide relations between sister states.
Cross River State was not privy to, nor did it determine, the diplomatic processes that culminated in the cession of Bakassi to the Republic of Cameroon. It would be unjust and inequitable for our State to suffer perpetual economic and developmental penalties for decisions taken at the level of the Federal Government in the discharge of Nigeria’s international obligations. Justice demands that mitigating measures, including fair derivation outcomes and scientifically grounded resource attribution, be pursued within Nigeria’s constitutional framework.
I therefore call on all stakeholders to rise above partisan politics, misinformation, and emotional manipulation, and to align behind a coherent strategy anchored on science, geology, law, and institutional due process.
This is a moment for unity, strategic discipline, and collective resolve. The people of Cross River State deserve leadership that is focused, responsible, and united in purpose.
No amount of blackmail, innuendo, or media manipulation will alter my unwavering commitment to the Government and people of Cross River State. Our cause is just. Our claim must be evidence-based. And our pursuit must be firm, dignified, and within the bounds of the law.
Fortunately, technology has preserved my full contributions on the floor of the Senate on this issue.
Cross River State must stand together.
Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, OFR, CON, SAN.
Leader of the 7th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Former
Chairman NDDC
Pro Chancellor & Chairman Federal University, Oye Ekiti ”.
