Bayelsa drags FG, Rivers & Akwa Ibom to Supreme Court over Soku oil wells

Bayelsa State government has filed a suit before the Supreme Court seeking to stop the Federal Government from further paying monthly statutory allocation from Soku oil wells to Rivers State.

In the suit filed in Abuja, according to Channels TV, Bayelsa State Government is invoking the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, which enables a state government to sue the Federal Government directly at the apex court.

No date has been fixed for the hearing.

A Federal High Court had, earlier in December 2019, ruled that Rivers State owns the disputed Soku oil wells located in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State. Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court declared that after examining all the documents from relevant government agencies and facts before the court, the Soku Oil Wells/fields belong to Rivers State.
However, Bayelsa State is now contending that it stands to lose billions of naira accruable to it if the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee, FAAC, complies with the high court judgement and pays the allocation to Rivers State.

Also, Bayelsa State is also seeking an interlocutory injunction against Akwa Ibom State, asking the Supreme Court to stop the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission from withholding its statutory allocation or deducting it in favour of Akwa Ibom State.