By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd), has signalled his readiness to step aside for the suspended democratically elected governor of the state, Siminalayi Fubara, at the expiration of the declared emergency rule.
Ibas maintained that the proposed N1.48tn 2025 budget is part of the preparation for the return of Fubara and other affected political officeholders
The Rivers administrator spoke on Wednesday while defending the budget before the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Rivers State Oversight.
He said, “In anticipation of the eventual return to constitutional order, the draft budget prudently retains provisions for the offices and functions of suspended political actors, some of whom have already drawn on allocated resources in the first quarter and are expected to resume their duties at the expiration of the emergency period.”
He, however, accused some suspected Rivers State officials of failure to provide the administration with useful information required to prepare the budget proposal.
Ibas added, “Regrettably, some state officials withheld critical information required to ensure a more complete capture of those expenditures at the time of submission of the budget estimates.
“However, recognising the exigencies under the state of emergency and the need to ensure fiscal credibility, the budget framework integrates expenditure information made available before the submission of the budget proposal to ratify the first quarter expenditures in a lawful and transparent structure.
“This ensures alignment with statutory appropriation protocols while safeguarding the integrity of public finance management.”
The budget, totalling ₦1.48tn in expenditure with a projected ₦1.4tn in revenue, was transmitted to the National Assembly following presidential approval after the Supreme Court ruled on the legality of the Rivers State 2025 appropriation process.
