Friday, March, 6 2026 - Ajulo, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Ondo State, has presented historical, legal and geographical evidence to counter claims by the Ogun State government over the ownership of Eba Island.
Speaking with journalists, Ajulo issued a detailed defence
of Ondo State’s claim to the island, describing the dispute as surprising given
that official records and decades of administrative control had recognised the
territory as belonging to Ondo.
“I speak as one who has served Ondo State with distinction
and has seen firsthand the recognition of Eba Island as part of our territory,”
he said. “The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and other federal
agencies visited the island on multiple occasions and without equivocation
recognised it as belonging to Ondo State. Yet, today, Ogun State lays claim to
it. What has changed?”
Ajulo said the claims prompted him to personally verify the
historical records surrounding the island’s ownership. “I undertook a solo
forensic study in the United Kingdom, consulting the British Library, the
National Archives at Kew and other repositories of colonial records,” he said.
“I examined original treaties, maps, intelligence sketches, cadastral surveys
and gazette notices. Each document confirmed that Eba Island is an integral
part of Atijere in Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State.”
He explained that before the 1914 amalgamation of Nigeria,
the island formed part of the Ilaje/Mahin territory within the Lagos Colony.
“In 1885, the Amapetu of Mahin signed a protection treaty with colonial
authorities, bringing the Mahin Kingdom, including Atijere and Eba Island,
under Lagos Colony’s aegis,” Ajulo said.
According to him, after the amalgamation of Nigeria, the
island became part of Ondo Province, specifically the Okitipupa Division, where
it was designated a forestry reserve under the Atijere Native Authority.
He added that by 1933, Atijere had become the administrative
headquarters of the district, hosting the Native Court where chiefs appointed
by the Amapetu presided over local governance. “Eba Island fell squarely under
the authority of Atijere Native Court. By 1950, it was incorporated into the
Ilaje District Council, with Atijere as its headquarters,” he said.
Ajulo noted that through various local government reforms,
including the creation of Ilaje/Ese-Odo Local Government in 1975 and the later
establishment of Ese-Odo Local Government Area in 1997, the island remained
part of Ilaje Local Government Area. He also highlighted the human and cultural
ties between the island and the Ilaje people
“Generations of Ilaje indigenes have lived, fished, farmed
and worshipped on Eba Island. They have never once paid allegiance or royalties
to Ogun State authorities. River Ufara serves as the natural and eternal
boundary between Ilaje land and Ijebu territory. The facts speak for
themselves,” he said.
Ajulo further explained the legal basis for Ondo’s claim,
citing Section 44(3) of the 1999 Constitution and Item 39 of the Exclusive
Legislative List, which vest ownership of mineral resources in the federal
government while determining derivation benefits based on territorial location
and host communities.
“Ownership cannot be established through press releases,
media narratives, or opportunistic assertions; it is anchored in historical
title, continuous administration and customary law. No gazette, court ruling or
boundary adjustment has transferred Eba Island to Ogun State,” he said.
He said documents from his research included colonial
administrative maps from the Lagos Colony era, intelligence reports and
provincial sketches after the amalgamation, treaty drawings from the 1885 Mahin
protection agreement, gazette notices and ethnographic maps placing the island
within Ondo jurisdiction, as well as forestry reserve plans and cadastral
surveys confirming Atijere Native Authority oversight. Ajulo warned that
competing claims over the island could create tensions along the coastal communities
of both states.
“Ogun’s assertions risk generating communal conflicts and
undermining the peace along our shared coastline,” he said. “Ondo State will
defend its territorial integrity with every lawful weapon in the courts, before
the National Boundary Commission and in the court of public opinion.”
He urged calm and dialogue while stressing that the matter
should be resolved through constitutional and legal processes. “Let there be no
shadow of doubt: Eba Island is Ondo State’s yesterday, today and forever. The
oil beneath it is a divine endowment for the people of Ilaje and for the
development of our state,” Ajulo said.
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