By Chief Okoi Obono-Obla
On 27 May 1967, the defunct South Eastern State (Akwa Ibom and Cross River States) was created out of the defunct Eastern Nigeria by the military administration of General Yakubu Gowon.
The capital of the South Eastern State was Calabar, but because the Nigerian Civil War also started on the same 27 May 1967 and Calabar was already under the control of the Biafran forces, Ogoja became the temporary capital of the South Eastern State till 1968, when Nigerian Federal Forces captured Calabar.
The Military Governor of the South Eastern State, Brigadier General Jacob Uduokaha Esuene, was a military pilot in the then-fledging Nigerian Air Force and couldn’t resume duty as Governor because Calabar was in the control of Biafran forces. Therefore in the temporary capital of Ogoja, a civilian sole administrator was appointed the superintendent of the affairs of the young State and started its bureaucracy.
The Sole Administrator was – Chief Michael Ani.
Many young civil servants from the South Eastern State in the federal public service were drafted and seconded to start the public service of the fledging State.
Brigadier General Jacob Uduokaha Esuene was a competent and firm but temperamental Military Officer who was appointed to run the affairs of the SouthEastern State from 27th May 1967, till 29 July 1975, when the military regime of General Yakubu Gowon was toppled in a military coup while he was away in Kampala, Uganda attending the annual summit of Head of States and Governments of the defunct Organization of African Unity (now African Union).
The new military regime of General Murtala Ramat Mohammed appointed Major General Paul Ufoma Omu as the second Governor of the South Eastern State. He was military Governor from 29 July 1975 till 16 February 1976.
The people of the present Cross River State under the aegis of the New Cross River State Movement had already started an agitation for the division of the South Eastern State into two States as far back as 1975 though in hushed tones.
They had started nursing political grievances against the government of Brigadier General Esuene whom they perceived to be more favorable and disposed to enhancing the prospects of people from the mainland South Eastern State (present Akwa Ibom State).
The military regime of General Mohammed set up a committee to collate proposals from those areas of the country that were agitating for States creation and submit a recommendation to the Supreme Military Council.
The people of Ogoja, Calabar, and Oron wanted the New Cross River State created and had submitted a proposal to that effect.
Disappointedly the Supreme Military Council announced the creation of seven new States on 3rd February 1976 namely Benue, Gongola, Ondo, Anambra, Imo, Kaduna, Niger, and Bornu without creating the Cross River State. The military rather mischievously changed the name of the South Eastern State to Cross River State.
On 13 February 1976, the Military Head of State and Commander in Chief, General Mohammed, was murdered in an unsuccessful military coup attempted by dissident military officers led by Colonel Dimka. General Omu remained Military Governor till 1978.
General Olusegun Obasanjo was appointed as the new Head of State and Commander in Chief and had to start a political transition program to transfer power to civilians.
As part of the process to disengage the military from political governance, the nomenclature of ‘military governors’ was changed to ‘military administrators’ to run the States.
In July 1978, Navy Captain Muftau Adegoke Babatunde Elegbede was appointed Military Administrator of Cross River State, Nigeria.
He was in office from 28 July 1978 till 30th September 1979.
The political transition initiated by General Obasanjo terminated on 1 October 1979 with the inauguration of a new civilian democratically elected government in the country.
In Cross River State, a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (1967-1975) and a Harvard University-trained economist, Dr. Clement Nyong Isong, was elected Governor under the platform of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN).
He administered the affairs of the Cross River State from 1 October 1979 till 1 October 1983 when his four years tenure as Governor expired. He lost a re-election bid to be the Governorship candidate of the NPN to Senator Donald Etiebet who eventually won the governorship election against Brigadier General Esuene (Who contested too under the platform of the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria – UPN).
On 1 October 1983, Senator Donald Dick Eteibet was sworn into office as the second Democratically elected Governor of Cross River State.
His four years tenure was abruptly affected by a constitutional catharsis that took place on 31 December 1983 when the military again struck and toppled the democratically elected government.
The President, National Assembly, Governors, and States Assembly, indeed had all the constitutional paraphernalia of democracy in the country suspended and a full-blown military dictatorship was foisted in the country.
The new military regime of General Muhammadu Buhari appointed Navy Captain Akpan but was dramatically changed less than two weeks after his appointment and resumption of office.
Navy Captain Archibong was succeeded by Brigadier General Dan Patrick Archibong as Military Governor of Cross River State from January 1984 until 1986.
He was succeeded by Colonel Kizito Ernest Attah, as Military Governor of Cross River State, from December 1989 to January 1992, during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.
General Babangida had introduced a political transition program and as part of the process to democratically elect State governors who were to be sworn into office in January 1992, in an election held in December 1991, a young economist cum journalist – Mr. Clement David Ebri of the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC) defeated Ntufam Matthew Ojong of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) to emerge as the 3rd democratically elected governor of Cross River State. He was in office from January 1992 till November 17, 1993.
General Sani Abacha toppled the National Interim Government contrived and packaged by General Babangida to soothe frayed nerves and political convulsion occasioned by his decision to annul the presidential election held in the country in June 1992 widely believed to have been won by Chief MKO Abiola.
Consequently, all elected Governors, National and States Assemblies that were already in place waiting for the transition program to run its course with the election of a President lost their positions.
The National Interim Government was headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan but ran into a political storm when a Lagos High Court declared that it was unconstitutional and illegal.
Commodore Ibrahim Kefas was appointed Military Governor of Cross River State from 9 December 1993 to 14 September 1994.
He was succeeded by Commodore Gregory Agboneni.
He was in office from 14th September 1994 – 22nd August 1996.
Colonel Umar Farouk Ahmed became the Military Administrator of Cross River State, Nigeria (August 1996 – August 1998).
Navy Captain Christopher Osondu was appointed Military Administrator of Cross River State, Nigeria from August 1998 till 29th May 1999.
In January 1999 the people of Cross River State elected a dashing and charismatic lawyer who had served as a Commissioner of Finance in the government of Dr. Clement David Ebri as the 4th democratically elected Governor of Cross River State. He was Mr. Donald Duke, elected under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and defeated the late Honourable Mark Ukpo of the defunct All Peoples Party (APP). He was in office from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007.
In April 2007, a Lawyer, former Minister, and Senator, Liyel Imoke was elected as the 5th democratically elected Governor of Cross River State under the platform of the PDP. He was in the office from 29 May 2007 till 29 May 2015.
On 29 May 2015, a Senator and leading environmental science scholar, Senator Ben Ayade, was elected the 6th democratically elected Governor of Cross River State. He will constitutionally relinquish office on the 29th of May 2023.
Cross River State will be 53 years old on the day 2023. This is a landmark in her chequered history.
On 29 May 2023, the reins of political governance and leadership in Cross River State will be changed when Senator Bassey Edet Otu takes over. He will be the 7th democratically elected Governor of Cross River State.
Let us know our history. A people without a history or knowledge of the same is a lost race. In taking an interest to know our history, we would be intentionally learning the strengths and pitfalls of our checkered history as a State but determined never to repeat events that can set us backward as a State/Nation.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!!! Long live Cross River State!!!
Backward Never! Forward Ever as a State!!!
OBOL Okoi Obono-obla
