Former governor of Cross River State, Mr. Donald Duke, has stated emphatically that he didn’t cede Bakassii as it is being alleged by some people.

Since the ceding of Balassi to Cameroon during the administration of Duke, a cross section of the Bakassi natives has accused him of being part of the people that sold off the peninsula.

But contrary to the views held by many people, Duke said he had no hand in the loss of Bakassi neither was he involved in the agreement to cede the peninsula, adding that the ceding was regretted.

Speaking during the launching a book, “Cross River State at 50: The People and Events that shaped it,” held at Channels View Hotels, Calabar, he said he did everything to reverse the ceding but to no avail.

The book, which was written by an elder statesman, Engr. Ekpe Esien Ita, who also used the occasion to celebrate his 70th birthday, drew personalities from all walks of life, including the Obong of Calabar, Etubom Ekpo Okon Abasi Otu V.

Duke said: “When I hosted Gen. Gowon in Calabar here, I urged him to write his own story or someone will write it for him even though he may not exactly like what would be told. Not long after, there was a council of state meeting where President Obansajo was presiding. Then, one of the members of the council, then Gen Muhammadu Buhari, pointing to the section where the head of states were asked by somebody to tell us why Bakassi should was sold.

“During the lunch break, I went back to him and said you have to tell us a story. Because the general perception is that Bakassi was sacrificed for the war. That it was exigent to accommodate France and Cameroun’s interest,” he said.

According to him, he took the matter to then Prime Minister of Britain, Mr. Tony Blair, who bluntly told him and his entourage that “to undo the agreement will be a terrible precedent,” saying the British PM revealed to them that they were other African countries that would be affected by such a decision.

“Britain and the United States were not sympathetic to our case and China and Russia were not interested. It was France that sympathised with us and told us that we could not have gone to court,” he disclosed.

While describing the ceding of Bakassi as “an international conspiracy,” he regretted that what was supposed to be done during the period was not done by the country, saying “I did everything to reverse the ceding but could not” succeed.

On the 76 oil wells that were ceded to Akwa Ibom State, Duke said: “It was during my time that we got the oil wells that were lost. That was a painful thing for all of us. I still think it should be remedied. In law, we have what is called double jeopardy; we lost the land and we also lost the assets.

“The asset didn’t go to Cameroun, it was for Nigeria. Today, Akwa Ibom State is the largest oil producing state in Nigeria. It was a political decision. At that time when Akwa Ibom State was having about N5billion, we were having between N225 and N240m. So I think that the political decision that gave them the oil should be used to give us back the 76 oil wells.”

On Tinapa, Duke regretted that the infrastructure had been allowed to waste, saying the non-usage of Tinapa was the greatest disservice his successors had done to the state.

“Tinapa has not been put to use and we shot ourselves in the foot when we did not put it to use. Government is continuous and the successor is always smarter than the predecessor,” he stated. (The Sun)

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