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From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The Supreme Court on Friday resolved the legal dispute between Rivers and Imo over the ownership of 17 oil wells in favour of Rivers state.
In a unanimous judgment, the apex court specifically declared that the the oil wells located in Ndoni and Egbema communities belong to Rivers state.
Before the judgment, there was a political arrangement put in place by the federal government for the revenue from the disputed wells to be shared equally between the two states.
However, when Emeka Ihedioha became governor in 2019, a presidential memo directed that all the revenue should go to Imo.
Rivers state is in its suit marked SC/1037/2020, seeking a declaration that the boundary between it 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 State.
The Plaintiff is further 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, 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 for a declaration of the Supreme Court that the correct instrument maps and documents to be relied on in determining the boundary between Rivers and Imo state, are those used by the Plaintiff in delineating the boundary line between Rivers and Imo state.
Besides, Plaintiff is also seeking 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.
It maintained that only Rivers State is entitled to receive the full allocation of the distributable revenue from the oil wells on the basis of the 1390 derivation as contained under section 162 of the 1999 constitution.
