The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd), says the 2025 budget of ₦1.48 trillion has been crafted with expectations that Governor Siminalayi Fubara and other suspended political officials will eventually return to office.
Ibas, who spoke in Abuja on Wednesday while defending the spending plan before the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Rivers State, said the budget retains allocations for political offices currently unoccupied due to the state’s ongoing political crisis.
“In anticipation of the eventual return to constitutional order,” he told lawmakers, “the draft budget prudently retains provisions for the offices and functions of suspended political actors… some of whom are expected to resume their duties after the emergency period.”
He described the proposal as an integrated fiscal blueprint anchored on the Rivers State Development Plan (2017–2027), aimed at expanding infrastructure, boosting revenue, and driving inclusive economic progress across the state.
The Punch reports that Ibas expressed concern over obstruction by some state officials, who he said withheld vital data needed for a more accurate representation of earlier expenditures.
“Regrettably, some state officials withheld critical information,” he noted, adding that despite the gaps, the budget framework incorporates first-quarter spending data to maintain fiscal credibility and compliance with legal standards.
The ₦1.48tn budget, approved by President Bola Tinubu and transmitted to the National Assembly following a Supreme Court ruling, projects ₦1.4tn in revenue and features significant investment in infrastructure and public services.
Breakdowns include ₦324.5bn for roads and transport, ₦55bn for relocating and expanding the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, ₦50bn for hospital upgrades, ₦38.85bn for erosion control and shoreline protection, ₦30bn for new zonal secondary schools, and ₦5.75bn for primary school rehabilitation.
It also includes ₦20bn to recapitalise the state’s Microfinance Bank for SME support, ₦2.5bn for women’s economic empowerment, ₦3bn for youth development centres, and ₦117bn for pensions and gratuities.
House Majority Leader and committee chair, Prof Julius Ihonvbere, praised Ibas for presenting a clear and detailed budget, pledging thorough scrutiny and support. “We will examine this budget with the seriousness it deserves,” he said. “Our goal is to partner with you to bring back peace, stability, and growth to Rivers State.”
