Anger is boiling over on the streets of Eket Local Government Area today Wednesday January 7, 2026, as hundreds of women from Ekid Nation, under the banner of “Akoiyak Ekid Women,” poured out in a grim protest, clad entirely in black, to denounce what they described as a calculated assault on their history, land, and dignity.
Wielding placards with searing inscriptions such as “Akoiyak Is Ekid Ancestral Land,” “Stop the Plundering of Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve,” “Umo Bassey Eno, Stop Insulting Ekid,” and “Privy Council Judgment of 1918 Affirmed Ekid Ownership,” among others, the women marched through major streets of Eket, sending a clear message of collective outrage and defiance.
The protest was triggered by a press release issued by the Akwa Ibom State Government yesterday which controversially claimed that the 1918 Privy Council judgment did not confer ownership of Akoiyak Ekid on Ekid Nation or any party.
To the Ekid people, that statement was not only false but an open provocation, one they insist amounts to a dangerous rewriting of history.
Tensions had already been inflamed following a Caveat Emptor issued by the Ekid People’s Union (EPU), warning the public against the illegal sale of portions of Akoiyak Ekid land by the state government to private investors without consultation with the indigenous owners, Ekid Nation.
In a move that has since shocked the Ekid Nation, Governor Umo Eno reportedly classified the lawful action of the EPU as an act of terrorism.
As of press time, Ekid Nation remains in what community leaders described as a “black mood”, with emotions running high over what is widely perceived as state-sponsored humiliation.
Speaking to journalists during the protest, the leader of the women, Obonganwan Eunice Udom, issued a stern demand for accountability.
“The governor must apologize to Ekid people for calling us terrorists. He has lived, worked, and prospered in Eket for over 35 years. Yet today, he insults our husbands and labels our children enemies of the state. We will not accept this,” she declared.
She warned that the protest would continue until the governor publicly retracts his statement and acknowledges the injury done to the Ekid people.
A youth leader, who spoke under condition of anonymity, was even more blunt, saying:
“Nothing on earth will make Ekid Nation support Umo Eno for a second term.”
Meanwhile, the President General of the Ekid People’s Union (EPU), Dr. Samuel Udonsak, has called for calm, urging restraint amid the rising tension. He maintained, however, that the Ekid position remains legally unassailable.
“We have more than enough evidence to puncture the press release issued by the state government. Our caveat was necessitated by the unauthorized sale of portions of Akoiyak Ekid to private investors without consulting the rightful landowners,” he said.
Also reacting, Obongiwaad Captain Willie Mbong, President of Afigh Iwaad Ekid, stated that the government’s press release has deepened the already poisoned relationship between Ekid and the Akwa Ibom State Government, while dangerously stoking tensions between Ekid and Ibeno communities.
“This statement has exacerbated bad blood and pushed the region closer to avoidable conflict,” he warned.
As events continue to unfold, one thing is unmistakably clear: Ekid Nation is no longer willing to suffer silence, distortion, or intimidation, and the streets of Eket have become the loudest courtroom where history, justice, and identity are being fiercely defended.
©Assam Abia
