Oloibiri: Court resolves dispute in suit seeking to stop Museum project

The legal dispute jeopardizing the Oloibiri Museum and Research Centre in Otuabagi, Ogbia LGA was resolved by the Yenagoa Division of the Bayelsa High Court on Thursday. 

The conflict arose from demands by the Otuabagi and Otuogidi communities, where Nigeria's first oil well and subsequent fields were situated, for a name change to accurately reflect their historical significance. 

Presided over by Justice Simon Amaduobogha, the high court affirmed Otuabagi Community as the host of West Africa's inaugural oil well, struck in 1956, thus rectifying what was perceived as a historical error and injustice.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the court adopted the terms of a settlement reached by the parties, following mediation by the Ijaw National Congress as a consent judgment.

The pan-Ijaw socio-cultural group had waded into the crisis and approached the court for an amicable out-of-court settlement, which was granted.

The court also ruled that the Oloibiri Museum and Research Centre, Otuabagi, should remain the name of the earmarked project proposed by the federal government.

In suit number OHC/10/2021, the court ordered the Oloibiri community to cease demanding relocation of the project or any part thereof since the earmarked project can only be cited where artefacts such as the first oil well are located.

According to the 2021 contract details, the Olobiri project, located in the Otuabagi, Otuogidi, and Opume host communities of the Oloibiri field, is expected to cost N117 billion.

The court records showed that the Oloibiri Oil field within the Oil Mining Lease (OML), hitherto operated by Shell, comprised 21 oil wells.

The wells were discovered and named sequentially, starting with the first discovery on January 15, 1956, in Otuabagi, in the then Oloibiri District, Brass Division, in pre-independence Nigeria.

Otuabagi hosted wells 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21. Otuogidi hosted wells 6 and 12, and Opume hosted wells 4, while, Oloibiri community had none.

The Petroleum Technology Development Fund and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board are developing the project.

Other partners are Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria and the Bayelsa government.