Calabar – The Indigenous Displaced People of Bakassi Communities (IDPBC), led by Chief Iyadim Amboni Iyadim, have called on the Federal Government to fulfill its 17-year-old promise of properly resettling them following the ceding of Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon. Speaking at a press briefing in Calabar on February 21, 2025, Chief Iyadim vehemently denied claims that their group petitioned for Bakassi Local Government to be delisted from the constitutionally recognized 774 councils in Nigeria NEGROIDHAVEN can report authoritatively.
Chief Iyadim refuted a letter purportedly written by the Bakassi Peninsula Aborigines Communities on February 1, 2025, claiming the IDPBC sought Bakassi’s removal from Nigeria’s administrative structure. He challenged the authors of the letter to provide any document proving such a request, affirming that Bakassi remains an integral part of Nigeria.
The IDPBC leader outlined the longstanding issues surrounding Bakassi’s relocation, emphasizing the inadequacies of Law No. 7 of 2007, which designated three wards in Ikang as the new Bakassi. He noted that the law has outlived its usefulness, yet efforts to amend it have been ignored. Despite multiple legal actions, including cases that reached the Supreme Court, the displaced people of Bakassi have yet to see concrete developments or proper resettlement.
To substantiate their claims, Chief Iyadim presented several documents, including: Letters from former Vice President Muhammed Sambo on the establishment of a technical committee for Bakassi resettlement. A letter from former INEC Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega detailing the official boundaries of Bakassi at Dayspring 1, 2, and Qua Island. Cross River State’s position paper, signed by the former Commissioner for Lands Barr. Edem Ekong, revoking land rights at Dayspring for Bakassi’s resettlement. Supreme Court verdicts and legal proceedings concerning the legitimacy of Ikang wards as part of Bakassi.
In their concluding remarks, the IDPBC urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to honor his campaign promise to resolve the Bakassi crisis. They cited the successful resettlement of displaced communities in Borno and Adamawa states as a precedent and called for similar intervention in Bakassi.
The IDPBC reaffirmed their commitment to seeking justice through constitutional means, emphasizing their alignment with the ruling APC and their efforts in the last general elections. They called on the government to address their plight and ensure proper resettlement, asserting that their displacement remains one of Nigeria’s unresolved humanitarian crises.
The press conference ended with renewed calls for immediate government action to rectify 17 years of neglect and fulfill the commitments made to the displaced people of Bakassi.
