The Ekid People’s Union (EPU), the apex socio-cultural organisation of the Ekid nation, has issued a formal caveat to the general public, investors, and corporate bodies over land transactions within the Stubb’s Creek Forest Reserve area in Akwa Ibom State.
In the notice, signed by the President General of EPU, Dr. Samuel Udonsak, and the Secretary General, Sir (Barr.) Bassey Dan-Abia, the Union declared that the land lying east of the Qua Iboe River on the Gulf of Guinea, commonly referred to as the Stubb’s Creek Forest Reserve and traditionally known as Okoyak, Okoiyak or Akqiyak, is the ancestral land of the Ekid people.
According to the caveat, the Ekid people’s ownership of the land was affirmed as far back as 1918 by the Privy Council in London in the case of Ntiaro and Ikpak v. Ibok Etukakpan and Edohoekit, as documented in the Nigerian Law Report (NLR). The Union stated that records of proceedings, including maps and survey plans tendered during the trial, remain accessible at the British National Library, Kew, Richmond, London.
The EPU disclosed that the land covers approximately 310 square kilometres and lies between latitude 4°32’N and 4°38’N and longitude 7°54’E and 8°18’E, spanning parts of Eket and Esit Eket Local Government Areas of Akwa Ibom State.
While acknowledging that the area was designated a forest reserve under Forest Reserve Order No. 45 of 1930 by the colonial government, the Union clarified that the reservation did not amount to acquisition or extinguishment of Ekid ownership rights. It maintained that the land was reserved strictly for forest conservation purposes and not acquired as Crown Land or overriding public interest land.
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“The Ekid people were never divested of ownership of the land and still retain title or deemed right of occupancy under the Land Use Act of 1978,” the notice stated.
The Union further accused the Akwa Ibom State Government of making what it described as “fraudulent misrepresentations” to the Federal Government and to local and foreign investors regarding ownership of the land.
EPU alleged that such actions have led to stalled investments in the area, including delays associated with the Ibom Deep Seaport project.
Consequently, the Ekid People’s Union warned that any individual, corporate body, or investor who engages with the Akwa Ibom State Government, the Ibeno people, or any other group as landlords over any portion of the Stubb’s Creek Forest Reserve within the stated coordinates does so at their own risk.
The Union reaffirmed its resolve to protect the ancestral heritage and land rights of the Ekid people and urged all stakeholders to take note of the caveat.
