Governor Otu Refuses to Back Down Amid Claims Cross River State Boasts 119 Oil Wells, Sparking 13% Dispute

Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has reignited the long-standing dispute over oil wells with Akwa Ibom State, following recent recommendations by a panel set up by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) on oil and gas wells in the Niger Delta.

The dispute stems from the aftermath of the Bakassi Peninsula saga, in which Nigeria ceded the peninsula to Cameroon in 2002, resulting in 76 oil wells being ceded to Akwa Ibom State, leaving Cross River with none, a decision that was later upheld by the Supreme Court in 2012.

Cross River State is now seeking a review of the Supreme Court's judgment, arguing that the earlier ruling was based on incorrect information, and hopes that the Supreme Court might reconsider its decision.

A report by the Inter-Agency Technical Committee (IATC) in January 2026, which verified over 1,000 oil and gas wells across Nigeria, has provided fresh fuel for Cross River's argument, as the committee found that the state has 119 oil wells, the same number as Akwa Ibom.

The IATC, which comprised representatives from the RMAFC, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the National Boundary Commission (NBC), and the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation (OSGoF), also recommended that Nigeria's maritime boundary maps be reviewed and that the Federal Government declare a state of emergency to resolve outstanding boundary disputes.

According to the verification exercise, the number of oil wells in each state is as follows: Rivers State has 195, Delta State has 171, Imo State has 169, Ondo State has 138, Cross River and Akwa Ibom have 119 each, Bayelsa has 92, Edo has 29, and Anambra has 25.

Governor Bassey Otu recently took stakeholders and journalists on a boat trip near the Bakassi Peninsula to demonstrate the controversial delineation that denied Cross River oil wells, arguing that the Supreme Court decision was based on flawed information.

Otu claimed that the facts presented to the Supreme Court were "very fraudulent" and that the court's decision, although final in law, was incorrect, and he believes that the issue has significant economic implications for the country.

The governor argued that Akwa Ibom does not share a direct boundary with Cameroon, as it is 25 nautical miles away, and that the line drawn was into the Calabar exterior, which belongs to Cross River State.

Otu framed the struggle as a quest for fairness, rather than a political quarrel, stating that the issue is not about politics, but about ensuring that the nation can grow peacefully and that Cross River State can enjoy its full rights.

The governor believes that the truth about the oil wells is known by those working on the offshore platforms and that the coordinates and historical foundations of the different places cannot be disputed, and he hopes that the issue will be resolved to bring peace and fairness to the region.

The debate over the oil wells, which began decades ago, is far from over, with Governor Bassey Otu's renewed push and the new technical findings ensuring that the issue remains a contentious one.