The Rivers State Government has provided details of how more than N302 billion was expended during the six-month tenure of former Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, retd, between March and August 2025.
The disclosure was made by the state’s Accountant-General and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in filings before the Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, in response to a Freedom of Information, FOI, suit instituted by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP.
The suit, marked PHC/4153/CS/2025, which seeks to compel the state authorities to account for funds received and spent during the emergency administration period, is currently before Justice S.H. Aprioku.
In a counter-affidavit dated March 10, 2026, the government officials stated that Rivers State received over N253.48 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee, FAAC, within the period under review.
Supporting documents, including bank statements and extracts of Government House capital estimates, filed as Exhibits DTI and DT2, indicate that total inflows, comprising FAAC allocations and other revenues, stood at about N298.35 billion.
The records further show that total expenditure slightly exceeded N302.35 billion.
The respondents maintained that they do not dispute SERAP’s right to access public information and have since made the requested documents available in compliance with the FOI Act.
They added that any delay in providing the information did not result in demonstrable harm to the applicant.
Part of the affidavit noted that although N28 billion was approved for the installation of a Closed Circuit Television, CCTV, system at the Government House, no funds were ultimately disbursed for the project.
Reacting to the development, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, said the organisation is reviewing the voluminous records to determine the extent of compliance with its request.
According to him, preliminary analysis of the documents reveals that over N112.41 billion was spent on salaries, pensions and overheads, while about N163.44 billion was allocated to ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs.
Notably, more than N106 billion of the MDA allocations was released in August alone, indicating a concentration of spending within a single month.
The records also show that about N26.01 billion was used for debt servicing, alongside approximately N491.6 million in bank charges, bringing total related costs to about N26.5 billion.
Further scrutiny of the documents indicates multiple transfers to the Government House, ranging from N1.8 million to N4.27 billion, with several recurring payments of up to N900 million. A single transfer of N4.27 billion was recorded in August.
On capital projects, more than N2.5 billion was reportedly earmarked for Government House quarters, though only about N1.1 billion appears as actual expenditure. Similarly, while N2.67 billion was allocated for office building rehabilitation, roughly N404 million was spent.
Other entries include N350 million budgeted for canteen and kitchen equipment—though disbursement details remain unclear—and over N463 million spent on rehabilitation works. A project initially valued at N800 million was later revised upward to N1.56 billion.
The documents further show that the state’s closing balance as of August 2025 stood at N19.93 billion.
SERAP, in its suit filed on October 31, 2025, is asking the court to determine whether it is entitled under the Nigerian Constitution and the FOI Act to access the requested financial records.
The matter has been adjourned to May 19, 2026, for further hearing.
