The Akwa Ibom State government has dismissed claims by the Ekid People’s Union over the ownership of the disputed Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve, insisting that the land remains a government reserve, warning that it will exercise its full authority over the area.
Governor Umo Eno also issued a stern warning to groups allegedly threatening to disrupt the construction of the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway, which passes through the forest reserve, declaring that no individual or community would be allowed to obstruct the project.
“Make no mistake, this is government. I have seen a caveat emptor and a letter from the Federal Ministry of Works concerning the Stubbs Creek Reserve. Nobody will stop that project; it is a government reserve,” the governor said.
In a statement issued on Wednesday in Uyo by the Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General of the State, Mr. Uko Udom (SAN), the government said it was compelled to clarify the issue in the overriding public interest, notwithstanding a pending suit filed by the Ekid People’s Union before a court of competent jurisdiction.
The statement described recent claims of ownership by the group as false and misleading, while reaffirming the state’s full support for the federal government’s Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway project.
Udom said the historic case of Ntiaro and Ikpak vs Ibok Etok Akpan and Edoho Ekid, decided by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1918, did not vest ownership of the Stubbs Creek land in any ethnic group or community.
“The final judgment merely dismissed the claims before the court and granted title to no party.
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“Any contrary interpretation amounts to a distortion of the judicial record and is therefore misleading,” the statement said.
The commissioner further explained that the land was subsequently lawfully constituted as a forest reserve by the colonial government of Nigeria under Forest Reserve Order No. 45 of 1930, with amendments in 1941, 1955, and 1962.
Upon its reservation, he said, principal rights over the land were forfeited to the government, which has since administered the area in line with applicable laws.
Reaffirming the state government’s constitutional mandate, Udom noted that under the 1999 Constitution and the Land Use Act, all land within Akwa Ibom State is vested in the governor to be held in trust for the use and common benefit of all Nigerians.
He stressed that claims of absolute or exclusive ownership based solely on ancestral or customary assertions are subject to existing laws.
The state government also denied allegations of fraud or misrepresentation in relation to the Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve or investments in the area, warning that it would take appropriate legal action against individuals or groups spreading false, misleading, or defamatory information capable of undermining public confidence or discouraging investment and infrastructural development in the state.
