November 10, (THEWILL) – The Cross River State government has assured stakeholders that it is implementing two consent judgements on Cocoa Royalties to landlord communities in the state.
Ntufam Dr Oscar Ofuka, the Special Adviser to the state governor on Cocoa Development and Control, disclosed this while appearing before a six-man committee to look into the crisis in the Cocoa sector.
He said the court judgements are the ones in Suit No. HE/16/2013 and HM/73/2020.
He told the house leadership that the state government has come up with a platform called SMARTGOV, to settle all backlogs of arrears of rent/royalties, settle all new rents/royalties at the agreed new rates, promptly settle all future rents/royalties, rehabilitate the estate and permanently put an end to litigations in respect of the cocoa estate.
“The current six years lease together with modalities for settlement of Cross River State government’s liabilities to landlords communities are strictly in line with the subsumed and combined effect of two valid and subsisting consent judgements of suit No: HM/16/2013, delivered on March 5, 2019 and suit No:HM/73/2020, delivered on July 5, 2022”, Ayade’s SA said.
He added that the implementation of court order will bring about a systematic mechanism to finally put to rest the old and future rents/royalties to permanently end litigations in respect of the estate.
He stressed that government recognises the landlord communities that sued it and for which the consent judgement was entered.
He said the real landlords committee members that dragged the state government to court had been toppled by the new set of landlords Communities committee, describing them as interlopers, who were desperate to rubbish the good intentions of the state government.
Hillary Bisong, the Chairman of the committee, said the committee was set up to help bring permanent peace to the Cocoa Communities.
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THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
