Ayip Eku Oil Palm Estate critical stakeholders’ issue one-month ultimatum to holding company for negligence

A coalition of critical stakeholders including, local host communities, the Cross River State Government, and the State House of Assembly and security agencies has given a strong one-month ultimatum to Wingsong M-House Palm Oil Investment Limited to produce day-time action plan.

The consortium demands submission of a robust and actionable development plan for the long-neglected Ayip Eku Oil Palm Estate in Cross River State.

Recall, Ayip Eku Palm Oil Estate was a key asset in the 2007 privatisation program initiated during the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo, with Wingsong M-House emerging as the preferred bidder, as announced by the Bureau for Public Enterprises.

However, nearly two decades since the successful bid, stakeholders have voiced profound concern over the conspicuous absence of any substantive investment by the company. The estate, comprising a significant landmass of approximately 12,400 hectares contributed by five communities within the Akamkpa Local Government Area in Cross River State has remained bare and undeveloped, allegedly transforming into a haven for criminal elements.

The protracted dormancy of the estate recently drew the attention of former Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, alleged to have vested interest whom report say raised concern over the unsavory relationship between the host communities and Wingsong M-House during his visit to Governor Bassey Otu.

The Ayip Eku plantation, established in the early 1970s, was initially held under a shareholding structure of 60 percent federal government, 30 percent Cross River State Government, and 10 percent Akamkpa Local Government Council.

At a crucial stakeholders’ meeting convened at the Metropolitan Hotel in Calabar on Tuesday, April 15th, a proposal by Mr. Moyi Ladoja, the Managing Director of Ayip Eku Oil Palm Limited, seeking a three-month extension to formulate a plan of action, was decisively rejected.

In a formal resolution issued at the end of the meeting, Mr. Johnson Ebokpo, the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, articulated the stakeholders’ demand for a concrete action plan within the stipulated one-month timeframe. This plan must demonstrably align with the tenets of the original Share, Sales and Purchase Agreement (SSPA).

Also, Wingsong M-House has been directed to deliver a formal letter of commitment to the Governor of Cross River State, explicitly referencing the date of the stakeholders’ meeting.

According to the Commissioner, this letter, copies of which will be disseminated to all security agencies within the state, serves as a crucial reference point for facilitating a peaceful and mutually acceptable resolution.

The participants collectively acknowledged that while the title deed for the Ayip Eku estate is legally held by Wingsong M-House, the company has conspicuously failed to meet the developmental expectations outlined in the SSPA arrangement.

Ebokpo issued a cautionary note to the company, stating that although there is currently no inclination towards a revocation of the title deed, the state legislature’s prerogative to enact legislation mandating such action would leave the executive arm of government with no recourse, but to comply.

By: Archibong Emmanuel

(Snr. Reporter)