…In the intricate dance of power in the Niger Delta, the State Security Service’s first port of call isn’t a government house, but the palace of the Obong of Calabar—a testament to a kingdom’s enduring role as the region’s ultimate intelligence asset.
CALABAR, NIGERIA – In the choreographed theatre of Nigerian security, the first step for a new spymaster in the South-South is not a secret briefing in a sterile safe house. It is a public, profound act of homage in a palace steeped in centuries of authority. The recent courtesy visit of Mr. Oluwole Faluyi, the newly appointed Director of the State Security Service (SSS), to His Eminence, Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi Otu V, the Obong of Calabar, was more than a photo opportunity. It was a strategic necessity—a silent acknowledgment that in Cross River state, and by extension the Niger Delta, the most critical intelligence database does not reside on a government server, but in the wisdom and networks of the Efik Eburutu throne.
While press releases spoke of “reverence” and “cultural respect,” the subtext of the meeting was a masterclass in realpolitik. The new SSS Director was not merely paying his respects to a cultural figurehead; he was effectively briefing his most crucial regional asset. In his public address, Mr. Faluyi laid this truth bare, describing the Obong not with the flowery language of tradition alone, but with the precise terminology of a security strategist. He called the Obong a “custodian of peace,” and, most tellingly, identified the Palace as “a pillar of community intelligence and a moral compass for security collaboration at the grassroots.”
This is the core of the “Strategic Kingmaker” paradigm. In a region where official intelligence apparatus can be blind to the subtle currents of community grievance, local politics, and emerging threats, the Obong’s network is all-seeing. The palace, through its chiefs and community structures, possesses a granular, real-time understanding of the populace that no number of field agents can reliably replicate. Besides, the traditional leadership institution runs through centuries with depth and breadth and width of information and perspectives. For a security agency like the SSS, this grassroots intelligence is not just helpful; it is operational gold dust. It is the difference between preventing a crisis and responding to a catastrophe.
This relationship positions the Efik Eburutu kingdom in a role that far surpasses that of other tribal entities in the South-South. While many traditional rulers are respected, the Obong of Calabar is in addition utilized. His influence is a functional tool of statecraft. The title of “Treaty King,” a relic of a sovereign past, finds modern utility in brokering peace and enabling security. This was not a discussion about festivals or folklore; it was a tactical alignment, where the Obong’s moral authority and deep-rooted influence were recognized as essential for the SSS’s mandate to succeed.
The Obong’s response, offering “royal blessings” and reaffirming the palace’s support, was the other half of this strategic exchange. By bestowing his legitimacy upon the new Director, the Obong effectively anoints him as a trusted partner in the eyes of the people. This royal seal of approval can lower barriers, open doors, and grant the SSS a level of community access and trust it could never achieve on its own. The call for “continued synergy” was a royal decree for a partnership where the throne is not a subordinate, but a senior advisor—the indispensable “moral compass” guiding the state’s coercive instruments.
The public nature of this exchange is a powerful signal. It reassures the citizens of Cross River, the people of the south south geopolitical zone and residents of the wider Niger Delta region that a proven, stable mechanism for security and peace is firmly in place. It demonstrates a model of governance—one where the timeless authority of a pre-colonial kingdom is seamlessly integrated into the security architecture of the modern Nigerian state.
In a nation often grappling with security challenges, the synergy between the Obong’s Palace and the SSS offers a compelling blueprint. It proves that true security is not just about firepower and technology, but about trust, intelligence, and legitimacy. And in the South-South, that formula for stability runs directly through the throne room in Calabar. The spies report to the king because, for the peace and prosperity of the region, they simply cannot afford not to.
