‎A Pan Oro Emancipation Advocacy Group, The Oro Redemption Forum has taken note of an interview granted by one Akparawa Idongesit Ikono, who claims to speak for Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio and Afigh Iwaad Ekid.

‎The group in a statement jointly signed by Ulap Henshaw Assi, the Acting Chairman/ Secretary; Ulap Ezekiel Ibok, the Director of Public Communication and Ulap Kingsley Akaiso, Esq., theDirector of Legal Services, it says “While we would ordinarily not dignify such remarks with a response, the distortion of historical facts and propagation of hate speech towards the Oro-obolo people cannot be ignored.”

‎See the full text of the Press Release.

‎”ORO REDEMPTION FORUM

(A Pan Oro Emancipation Advocacy Group)

‎                                                       25/08/2026

‎Press Release

‎UNCHECKED HOSTILITY BY MBOHO MKPARAWA IBIBIO AND AFIGH IWAAD EKID THREATENS AKWA IBOM AND NATIONAL SECURITY

‎The Oro Redemption Forum has taken note of an interview granted by one Akparawa Idongesit Ikono, who claims to speak for Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio and Afigh Iwaad Ekid. While we would ordinarily not dignify such remarks with a response, the distortion of historical facts and propagation of hate speech towards the Oro-obolo people cannot be ignored.

‎When historical records are selectively interpreted and half-truths are presented as facts by land grabbers, silence can easily be mistaken for agreement. These statements have resurrected the controversy surrounding the re-mapping of Akwa Ibom State in 2023 during the past administration, it’s now obvious that the re-mapping exercise was another example of the hand of Esau but the voice of Jacob, with a divisive intent to destroy the harmony, peace and impede the further progress of our dear state, just like the unnecessary dispute on the Stubbs creek is impeding the execution of a refinery project that is expected to further improve the economy of our state.

‎Issues concerning the identity, boundaries, history, and territorial integrity of communities deserve more than assertions and conjectures. They require facts, credible records, and an honest examination of history.

‎Against this backdrop, the facts surrounding the remapping deserves a closer and more objective examination:

‎1. What map governed Akwa Ibom before 2023? If there was supposedly no official territorial map before 2023, what map, survey records and boundary documents were used to administer Akwa Ibom State from its creation in 1987? A state cannot be administered for decades without an established geographical and territorial framework. The proponents of the 2023 map must therefore explain what existed before it and why that framework was changed, was it driven by parochial interests?

‎2. Which Map was used in pre-2023 boundary disputes and the oil-Wells Case? Which maps and boundary evidence were relied upon in the longstanding disputes involving Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Rivers States? More importantly, which authenticated map was presented in the legal proceedings that culminated in the Supreme Court’s 2012 judgment concerning the ownership of the disputed oil wells? If the so-called “new” map had always existed, proponents should explain why it was not the authoritative map relied upon in those proceedings, which map is recognized by the Surveyor General of the Federation? History cannot simply be rewritten to accommodate a later narrative.

‎3. What happened when the re-mapping was challenged in court? Peace loving and truth seeking Akwa Ibomites deserves a clear account of the legal challenges to the re-mapping exercise. In Suit No. HU/341/2021, Joseph Daniel Ekoyork & Ors v. Akwa Ibom State & Ors, the Akwa Ibom State High Court, Uyo, delivered judgment on 27 January 2022 and restrained the defendants from remapping or adjusting the affected local-government boundaries without complying with Section 8(4) of the 1999 Constitution. Separately, Suit No. FHC/UY/CS/49/2023, The Paramount Ruler of Ibeno & 8 Ors v. Akwa Ibom State & 15 Ors, was filed at the Federal High Court challenging the 2023 map law. Why was the ill-advised re-mapping exercise still continued by the previous administration in the face of clear court judgements to the contrary? Is this not a case of disregard for the rule of law? These court proceedings cannot simply be erased from the public record because of greed or anticipated pecuniary ephemeral earthly gains of a group of people known for land grabbing.

‎4. Can a Politically Motivated Map (PMM) override the ancient boundaries and the physical reality of the coast? The geographical relationship between the coastal communities in Oron, Okobo, Urue Offong Oruko, Udung Uko, Mbo, Eastern Obolo, Ibeno and the Atlantic Ocean is a physical reality, not a political opinion. No cartographic exercise can move the sea or erase the historical relationship between the Oro-Obolo people and their littoral environment. A map should document geography, not manufacture it

‎5. What exactly changed in 2023? The Oro Redemption Forum’s position is straightforward: Akwa Ibom State did not suddenly acquire new territory, geography or historical boundaries in 2023 and as such no basis for the re-mapping exercise other than clannish interests which is inimical to the progress of our state.

‎6. The Oro Redemption Forum will not watch while a matter of geography, law and history is reduced to ethnic rhetoric or political grandstanding. Oro-Obolo is not a conquered territory, and its geographical relationship with the Atlantic Ocean cannot be surrendered through declarations, publications or disputed cartographic representations.

‎7. The recent rise in hostility, where individuals exploit available platforms to promote hate speech towards the Oro-Obolo people, incite ethnic rivalry, violence, and social unrest—threatens to drag Akwa Ibom State into a dangerous decline if left unchecked. What we are witnessing goes beyond politics; it is a calculated test of the very foundation of Akwa Ibom and National Security.

‎8. It is important to highlight some lessons from Dr. Gregory Stanton study of genocides and how mass atrocities develop through hate speech propagation and how they can be prevented by early identification of the 10 stages of genocide. This forceful re-mapping exercise has presented signs of 2 stages of a planned Genocide (Organization and Discrimination) where a dominant group uses instrument of a state, create obnoxious laws and political power in a guise to deny the right of a targeted group (Oro-Obolo People) to the littoral status of the Atlantic Ocean.

‎9. “Akwa Ibom United” mantra cannot remain a mere slogan for billboards, political rallies, content creation, or power retention. It is a covenant—one that guarantees no group will be erased, no community will be cheated, no land will be annexed through re-mapping, and no history will be rewritten.

‎10. Now is the time for key stakeholders, community leaders, cultural organizations, to act immediately with fairness, transparency, to call all groups heating up the polity to order. If we allow arbitrary re-mapping laws, seaport politics, and hate speech to dictate our trajectory, “Akwa Ibom United” will shift from a shared reality into an empty promise of chaos. On this note, Dr. Udonsak’s callous, violence, incriminating statement, which has thrown the entire state into Pendamonium must be scrutinised, and he must therefore be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.

‎We appeal to the peace-loving Governor of Akwa Ibom State, His Excellency Pastor Umo Eno PhD to use his good office to protect the rights of the Oro-Obolo People, to prevent this re-mapping issue from snowballing into an inferno that will be inimical to the peace, progress and prosperity of our state.

‎The peace and unity of Akwa Ibom State must never be sacrificed on the altar of tribal superiority, political or economic interests.

‎Signed

‎Ulap Henshaw Assi

Acting Chairman/ Secretary

‎Ulap Ezekiel Ibok

‎Director of Public Communication

‎Ulap Kingsley Akaiso, Esq.

‎Director of Legal Services”

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