By Onyewuchi Ojinnaka
The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Wednesday granted an order of injunction stopping the Federal Government and its agencies from ceding 17 disputed oil wells located at Akri and Mbede to Imo State.
The order of injunction was granted by the Supreme Court following an ex-parte application brought by the Rivers State Government, praying the court to stop the alleged implementation of the ceding of the 17 oil wells to Imo, pending the determination of a suit brought before the Apex Court. In a chamber ruling by the Supreme Court in the ex-parte application argued by Emmanuel Ukala (SAN), the Apex Court restrained the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and the Attorney General of Imo State from taking any further action/step on the ownership of the disputed 17 oil wells till the ownership disputes surrounding them are determined.
The court also restrained 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 whatsoever 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.
Subsequently, the court fixed September 21, 2021, for a hearing of the substantive suit.
Rivers State, through her Attorney-General, had dragged the AGF and the Attorney- General of Imo State before the Supreme Court, praying for a declaration that the boundary between Rivers and Imo, 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 also sought 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 upon to determine the extent of the territorial governmental jurisdiction of Rivers.
Also to determine the revenue accruing to Rivers 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 prayed the Supreme Court to declare 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.
Furthermore, the plaintiff 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 the 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 1390 derivation as contained under Section 162 of the 1999 constitution.
Consequently, Rivers State sought an order of mandatory injunction directing the AGF to calculate, to its satisfaction, and refund to it all revenue that has 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.
Besides, it sought an order of Injunction directing the AGF to withdraw from circulation its administrative map 10,11 and 12th editions and to refrain from relying on any of the said maps for the purpose of determining the boundary between Rivers and Imo state.
It also applied for another order of mandatory injunction directing AGF to produce an administrative map bearing the correct boundary between Rivers and Imo state and a sum of N500 million sought as cost of prosecuting the case.