Ownership of the oil-rich Eba Island has torn the neighbouring Ogun and Ondo State governments apart, Daily Trust reports.

The controversy followed the recent disclosure of President Bola Tinubu’s approval for the commencement of commercial oil exploration at the island, said to border both states.

Governor Dapo Abiodun made the disclosure on penultimate Thursday while receiving the Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Abubakar Mustapha, during a courtesy visit in Abeokuta.

The first controversy emerged after conflicting statements from the government on the location of the drilling operations between Tongeji Island in Ipokia Local Government Area and Eba Island, said to be in Ogun Waterside LGA.

While the first statement quoted Abiodun as saying: “Let me share with you that Mr President has approved the commencement of commercial oil drilling operations at Tongeji Island, and going forward, you will begin to see a lot of activities there.”

The governor also revealed that President Tinubu has approved the immediate take-off of the Olokola Deep Seaport project located in Ogun Waterside Local Government Area, marking a major breakthrough after years of anticipation surrounding the multibillion-dollar port development.

But the Ondo State Government formally rejected Ogun’s ownership claim of Eba Island, describing it as totally unacceptable.

“In this case, the oil deposit in question is situated in Atijere, Ondo State,” Allen Sowore, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Communication and Strategy, said in a statement on Friday.

Sowore said the landowners are indigenes of Atijere, where they reside, adding that the village has existed since at least 1937, and Eba Island has historically fallen under the Atijere Native Court Authority.

He said, “Historically, Eba Island formed part of Ilaje/Mahin Country in the defunct Lagos Colony under Governor Sir John Hawley Glover prior to the 1914 Amalgamation. Following amalgamation, it became part of the Ondo Province, specifically the Okitipupa Division, and was designated a forestry reserve under the Atijere Native Authority.

“Subsequently, Eba Island was incorporated into the Ilaje District Council around 1950, with Atijere as its headquarters. When Ilaje/Ese-Odo Local Government Area was created in 1975, the island remained under its jurisdiction. Following the creation of Ese-Odo Local Government Area in 1997, Eba Island continued as an integral part of Ilaje Local Government Area, where it remains to this day—still designated as an Ondo State forestry reserve.

“Ogun and Ondo States are distinct entities in the South-West with clearly defined administrative and historical boundaries and a long record of cordial relations. However, recent attempts to misrepresent facts and convey inaccurate information regarding the location of an oil deposit situated within Ondo State—even to federal authorities—are unacceptable.”

According to him, the communities surrounding the oil well—Ago Alaja, Balogun Bode, and Fasuyi—are cluster villages of the Atijere community.

He pointed out that successive Baales and village heads of Balogun Bode and Fasuyi, including the current Baale, Chief Segun Fasuyi, were installed by the Ondo State Government.

“All inhabitants of these communities are indigenes of Ondo State,” he said.

The governor’s spokesman called on the National Boundary Commission and relevant federal agencies to “make available authoritative records and documentary evidence capable of putting an end to these misleading claims and unnecessary public tension.”

Ogun fires back, warns Ondo against stoking communal tension

Responding in a statement on Sunday, the Ogun State Government reaffirmed what it called its territorial jurisdiction over Eba Island in Ogun Waterside Local Government Area, dismissing claims by the Ondo State as misleading and capable of triggering avoidable communal tension.

This is contained in a statement issued on Sunday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Information and Strategy, Hon. Kayode Akinmade.