Alhaji Mujahid Abubakr Dokubo-Asari, has rejected allegations by the Udekama Council of Chiefs accusing Royal Fouche Security Services of operating as an “army of occupation” and engaging in land grabbing.
Dokubo-Asari, who spoke with reporters in Rivers State, said he was saddened by the allegations because they sought to link him to a longstanding land dispute between neighbouring communities, insisting that the dispute predated his involvement and that he had never claimed ownership of the disputed land.
“I felt saddened when I heard these allegations. I came back home after a long time away from Rivers State, only to read these vexatious allegations against me,” he said.
“This is a dispute that existed long before I was born. I was not a party to the court cases from which these allegations appear to have arisen, and I have never claimed ownership of the land in question.”
The monarch traced the current controversy to developments in Obuama in 2020, when the community began preparations to implement a five-year development plan.
He said portions of community land had traditionally been allocated to deserving members who applied for land for development.
According to him, some of the land was allocated along the corridor of the major road linking Tema, Okpo, Obuama, Degema and Abonema.
Dokubo-Asari said the road was constructed in 1973 during the administration of the then Rivers State Military Governor, Commander Diete Spiff, with compensation paid to affected communities.
He said the communities along the corridor had traditionally held land on both sides of the road.
However, he said people from Usokun challenged Obuama’s development plans, claiming ownership of the land and subsequently taking the matter to court.
“What is important is that there was no injunction stopping Obuama from developing the land. Yet Obuama chose to hold back because they wanted peace and wanted the matter resolved through the courts rather than through confrontation,” he said.
‘This dispute did not start with me’
Dokubo-Asari said the legal history of the matter showed that the dispute was considerably older than the current allegations.
He referred to the case, DHC/76/CS/2020, HRH Chief Charles Sunday-Ugu VII & 3 Ors. v. Chief Kalada Samuel Harry & Anor., in which the High Court considered issues bordering on estoppel/res judicata and the claimants’ title to the disputed land.
According to the judgment summary cited by him, the court found that the claimants were caught by earlier litigation, including a 1938 Native Court judgment in favour of Obuama which had not been set aside.
He added that the court also found that the claimants had failed to establish their title through the traditional evidence presented.
Dokubo-Asari argued that the judicial history made it inappropriate to portray him as the originator or principal actor in the dispute.
“All the court cases instituted by the Udekama people have, according to the records before us, been adjudicated upon. Yet instead of pursuing the appropriate appellate process, new allegations continue to emerge,” he said.
“My question is simple: if this dispute was already before the courts and I was not a party to it, how have I now become the person responsible for the dispute?”
‘Where is the occupation?’
The monarch also dismissed the description of Royal Fouche Security Services as an “army of occupation”.
“Occupation of what?” he asked.
He said Royal Fouche had provided security on land and waterways across communities in four local government areas for approximately four years.
“Yet those making this allegation have not identified one portion of land that Royal Fouche has taken over.
“Where is the community that has been displaced? Where is the land that has been seized?”
Dokubo-Asari said security operations should not be confused with ownership or occupation of land.
“If Royal Fouche is truly an occupation army, why have other communities where it has operated not raised similar allegations?” he asked.
According to him, Royal Fouche had provided security along the Emohua/Kalabari corridor and surrounding waterways for more than four years without payment from the Rivers State Government or the four local government areas concerned.
He claimed that the organisation’s operations had helped reduce kidnapping and armed robbery along the corridor.
“You have to speak to the people to confirm the positive impact of my men in the discharge of their duties,” he said.
“Talk to people from the various communities. Talk to transporters. They will tell you their ugly experiences before and the level of safety and peace of mind they now enjoy on that route.”
Dokubo-Asari gives historical account
The monarch also gave his account of the origins and settlement of the Udekama people in the area.
He said his forebear, King Amakiri I, whom he described as the founder of the modern Kalabari Kingdom, brought the people from Engenni in present-day Ahoada East Local Government Area and settled them among the Kalabari people.
According to him, the historical account passed down to him was that they lived on the fringes of the kingdom and served as buffers during periods of warfare by providing intelligence about impending attacks.
He also attributed aspects of their educational development to the support of the Kalabari people and the Baptist Convention.
“My concern is that people who were historically accommodated and supported should not now turn around and challenge the people who accommodated them and claim ownership of their land,” he said.
He, however, stressed that historical claims should be examined alongside documentary and judicial records rather than allowed to fuel ethnic confrontation.
‘Let the law determine the issues’
Dokubo-Asari said his position was ultimately about peace and due process.
“I have nothing to fear from lawful investigation. But serious allegations such as genocide, terrorism or occupation should not be used casually,” he said.
“If there is evidence of wrongdoing, let the evidence be produced and let the appropriate authorities investigate it.”
“But do not take a longstanding dispute between neighbouring communities, attach my name to it when I was never a party to the litigation, and then create a completely different narrative around it.”
He said Obuama’s preference for peaceful coexistence and the judicial process should not be mistaken for weakness.
“We must separate the land dispute from the security question and allow evidence, the law and the courts to determine the issues.”
The monarch called for an independent investigation of the allegations, urging the Rivers State Government to constitute a judicial panel of inquiry.
“I welcome a judicial panel of inquiry by the State Government to investigate the allegation of land grabbing,” he said.
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