By Gabriel Ewepu

Abuja — Former Speaker of the Cross River State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. John Gaul Lebo, on Friday dismissed reports alleging that the Cross River State delegation staged a walkout during proceedings of the Federal Government’s Inter-Agency Technical Committee meeting in Abuja over the plotting of disputed and newly drilled oil and gas wells between Cross River and Akwa Ibom States.

Lebo described the report as misleading and intended to portray the Cross River delegation in a negative light. He stressed that despite protests earlier staged by some Akwa Ibom indigenes in Abuja before the commencement of the meeting, the Cross River delegation remained committed to ensuring that the proceedings continued.

According to him, contrary to the circulating narrative, the meeting was initially paused when the Acting Chairman of the Committee—representing the Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Mr. Aliyu Almakura Abdulkadir, Federal Commissioner representing Nasarawa State—announced a temporary suspension of the presentation of the Committee’s report.

The Cross River State delegation, however, expressed concern over the suspension and formally protested the decision. Following engagements with the Committee, the presentation was allowed to proceed as earlier scheduled.

During the session, the appointed surveyor presented newly generated coordinate mappings, clearly establishing both land and maritime boundaries between Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State. The technical presentation reaffirmed the existing boundary demarcations between the two states.

The proceedings were allegedly later disrupted when the Surveyor-General of Akwa Ibom State, Surv. Emem Isang, raised what was described as an unsubstantiated claim that Akwa Ibom State does not share a maritime boundary with Cross River State.

This claim drew strong objections from the Cross River delegation, leading to a formal protest as the Akwa Ibom delegation stalled the proceedings. As tensions rose, the sitting was adjourned and formally suspended to a later date, pending the presence of the substantive Chairman of the Commission, Dr. Mohammed Bello Shehu, who is expected to oversee the final presentation of the report to the affected states.

Speaking during the programme, Lebo reaffirmed that a clear and well-established maritime boundary exists between Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State, adding that the Committee’s findings supported the position he earlier submitted in a petition to President Bola Tinubu.

“For the avoidance of doubt, at no point did the Cross River State delegation stage a walkout from the meeting. The delegation remained fully engaged throughout the proceedings and participated actively in all deliberations until the official suspension of the sitting”, he said.

The Cross River State delegation was led by the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Hon. Emmanuel Ironbar, and included the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Hon. Ededem Ani, as well as other senior government officials and stakeholders.

Addressing members of the delegation, Ironbar said the Cross River State Government remains committed to due process, constructive engagement, and the peaceful resolution of all boundary-related issues in line with constitutional provisions and established legal frameworks.

“We urge members of the public and media organisations to rely on verified information and uphold professionalism in their reportage, in the interest of peace, unity, and responsible journalism”, Ironbar said.