Date Published: 06/24/09

Sir,

The 186 Oil Well's palavar

It is noteworthy that Cross River State seems to be the only one feeling it the more, among the two affected by the ceded 186 oil wells to Akwa Ibom State. Rivers had its 110 oil-wells while Cross River 76 so ceded. Nevertheless, the difference in reaction between the Rivers and Cross River is that Cross River State, through the action had been stripped the status of oil-producing State.

The action affected, to a very large extent, the income of the State so much that out of the present N1.7billion it got from the federation allocation account committee, FAAC, in May, according to the Governor Imoke, N1.2billion went for its monthly salary bill, another N0.3billion towards running of the government and N0.2billion towards capital expenditure.

The Rivers State still with an oil-producing status could not be feeling the pinch as much because it remains high-earning, courtesy of oil derivation. Though it (Rivers) had gone to court to ensure that its 110 oil-wells were returned back, it is not clear if the same political solution being expected to apply in the case of Cross River would also apply in Rivers’.

If all would be resolved politically, it then means that it was premature for Governor Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State to have called upon his people to come out in their numbers for special thanksgiving service to God for returning what he said was theirs but mistakenly appropriated by Cross River and Rivers States. We shall wait to see how these scenarios play out in the near future, probably.

Emmanuel James, 159 Woji Road, Port Harcourt

emmanuel.james98@yahoo.com