If there is one death that has rocked the socio-political, traditional and even religious life of Akwa Ibom state, is the that HRM, Edidem Robert James Obot, paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium local government area and the Oku Ibom Ibibio III, who was assassinated in his palace on Sunday December 31, 2010 by some hoodlums who the security agencies later paraded as kidnappers.

As soon as the first class monarch, a chattered accountant and an elder in Living Faith (Winners Chapel) Ministries, was confirmed dead, security agent went into action. The state government also went into action too – suspending some traditional rulers whom the slain monarch had only a year before his death, had told the police commissioner, that they were showing some recalcitrant attitude and disrespect to his throne.

On their part, the police invited whoever was mentioned even in passing, in the petition, the slain monarch gave to the police. The then Senator representing Uyo Senatorial district, Sen. Effiong Bob was summoned all the way from Abuja for questioning in Uyo by the police. The suspended traditional rulers were equally arrested and detained by the police.
A few weeks later, the state security service (SSS), paraded two young men said to have committed the regicide. The duo led by one Nsikak Emmanuel actually admitted shooting the royal father when he resisted being kidnapped.

But all those upheaval may amount to a storm in a teapot compared to the expulsion of HRM, Edidem Akpabio Udo Ukpa from Ifim Ibom Ibibio, the apex Ibibio traditional institution by other paramount rulers of Ibibio. His offence according to them is that Ukpa had been going about calling himself Oku Ibom III even when the remains of the real Oku Ibom III, who was Robert Obot, had yet to be buried.

Rising from their meeting on Tuesday, June 7, 2011, the seven paramount rulers of Ibibio extraction namely Edidem Ime Umoette of Etinan, Edidem Ime Inyang of Ibiono Ibom, Edidem Silas Akpan of Uyo, Edidem Edet Inyang of Itu, Edidem E.B. Ekanem of Uruan, Edidem Akpan Ntuen of Nsit Atai and Edidem Effiong Ineme of Ikono, willed the big stick on their influential and flamboyant colleague from Onna by expelling him from their midst.

The royal fathers said they decided to expel Ukpa, for flouting their order which demanded him not to parade himself as the Oku Ibom Ibibio until the final burial of their colleague and paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium, Edidem Robert Obot slain by suspected kidnappers on December 31, 2010, in his palace.

“Edidiem Akpabio Udo Ukpa has against our traditional injunction paraded himself on three different occasions as the Oku Ibom Ibibio and also caused the publication of same using the state media even when the late Oku Ibom Ibibio III was yet to be buried and given his last respect according to Ibibio customary rites.
“It beats our imagination and that of the people as to the reason behind the lackadaisical attitudes of a royal father in the caliber of Edidiem Akpabin Udo Ukpa, who instead of upholding the traditional practice of the Ibibio people as a paramount ruler in Ibibio land, goes about recklessly disparaging our custom, tradition and practice even in the face of his slain colleague whose remains still lying in the mortuary.”

The traditional fathers said Ukpa’s continuous disregarding of the Ibibio traditional injunction that was placed on the Oku Ibom stool as a mark of respect to their slain leader, the late Oku Ibom Ibibio III, the paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium local government area, Edidem Robert James Obot, had bee viewed as a calculated by Edidem Ukpa to rubbish their late respected king and bring the esteemed traditional stool of Ibibio to a disrespect.

“Therefore his continuous disregarding of the Ibibio traditional injunction that was placed on the Oku Ibom stool as a mark of respect to our slain leader, the late Oku Ibom Ibibio III, the paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium local government area, His Eminence Robert James Obot has been viewed as a calculated attempt by Edidem Ukpa to rubbish our late respected King and bring the esteemed traditional stool of Ibibio to a disrepute.

“Consequently, after several meetings ad deliberations on the matter and a careful study of the 1988 constitution of the Supreme Council of Ibibio Traditional Rulers (Ifim Ibom Ibibio) specifically, Article X11(a) and (b) which explicitly declare that, (a) “members of the Ifim Ibom Ibibio shall be directly under the executive committee in matters of discipline,” and (b) “a member may be indicted for misconduct, insubordination or any offence that is likely to jeopardize the cause of Ifim Ibom Ibibio provided that such a member was previously given the opportunity of being heard in the defence before the executive committee.

The executive committee shall take any disciplinary action it shall consider appropriate and shall refer all cases of major offences to the general meeting for determination.”
The royal fathers said since Ukpa had been given several opportunities to defend himself on the allegations against him but he never refrained from his disrespectful conduct, the had no choice than to invoke sections of their 1998 constitution which authorized them to expel Ukpa from Ifim Ibom Ibibio.

“By this his expulsion, the paramount ruler of Onna, Edidem Akpabio Udo Ukpa, is hereby forbidden from attending any meeting(s) or activities of the Supreme Council of Ibibio Traditional Rulers (Ifim Ibom Ibibio) forthwith. He is prohibited from discussing, commenting or making statement(s) in matters relating to Oku Ibom stool and by extension Ifim Ibom Ibibio forthwith.”

While asking the state government, Ibibio sons and daughters and the general public to be aware of their position and treat Ukpa henceforth as a non-member of Ifim Ibom Ibibio as well as ignore any comment he could make on the issue, the royal father strongly stressed that they would “henceforth boycott any meeting, activity or gathering where Edidem Ukpa is invited on the platform of Ifim Ibom Ibibio forthwith.”

Ukpa had claimed to be the Oku Ibom III when Robert Obot was nominated to the stool by Ibibio monarchs. In all his official letters he had claimed to be the Oku Ibom leading to a problem that forced the state government to intervene. They were in the process of finding amicable settlement to it when Robert Obot was slain.

Even after his expulsion, the royal father who refused to comment on the problem when The Sun called him on phone, is still issuing public statements in his official capacity of Oku Ibom III. One of such statements is the congratulatory message he published in honour of the new speaker of the state house of assembly, Hon. Sam Ikon, which was aired on the state broadcast media a few days after the purported expulsion.

Ukpa, a former political adviser to the then governor old Cross River state, Dr Clement Isong, and who prides self as “a man who knows politics and political processes long before 1960,” not only calls himself the Oku Ibom Ibibio III, he has other, sometimes very long titles. Here are a few of them: His Eminence, Akwa Edidem (Dr) Akpabio Udo Ukpa, JP, FCE; Paramount Ruler of Onna LGA; Chairman ExxonMobil Host Communities Forum; First National Life Patron of Trompcon; Member, Oil and Gas Preservation Committee of the Federal Government; and, President, Eket Senatorial District Traditional Rulers Council.

Will the expulsion stands, or will Ukpa apologise to his colleagues and denounce the Ifim Ibom Ibibio III title or will he bulldoze his way, ram the title down the throat of his colleagues and emerge victorious?
Wherever the pendulum swings, the title of Ifim Ibom Ibibio may not be the same again. And as a royal father told The Sun, “the eventual winner may after all, win the coolest part of hell on the stool.”