Rivers Govt Discloses How Ex-Sole Administrator Ibas Spent Over ₦302 Billion in Six Months
The Rivers State Accountant-General and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning have revealed in court how the administration of former Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Rtd), spent more than ₦302 billion from Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) funds and other sources between March and August 2025.
The disclosures were made in a counter-affidavit filed on 10 March 2026 in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) lawsuit brought by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).
According to the counter-affidavit, Rivers State received ₦253,480,052,907.33 from FAAC allocations during the period, with additional receipts of ₦44,868,976,368.32 from other sources, bringing total inflows to approximately ₦298.35 billion. However, total expenditure during the six-month emergency rule exceeded ₦302.35 billion.
The documents, tendered as Exhibit DTI (bank statements) and Exhibit DT2 (capital pages of the Government House estimate), running into 49 pages, detail various expenditures, including multiple transfers to the Government House, payments to individuals via NIP transfers, and allocations to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
SERAP’s preliminary review of the exhibits shows:
– Over ₦112.41 billion was spent on salaries, pensions, and overheads.
– ₦163.44 billion was allocated to MDAs, with more than ₦106 billion of that amount disbursed in August alone.
– Over ₦26.01 billion was used to service loans, while ₦491.59 million went on bank charges.
– Several large payments to the Government House, including repeated ₦900 million transfers and a single ₦4.27 billion transaction in August.
– ₦28 billion was approved for CCTV installation at the State House, but no expenditure was incurred on the project.
The counter-affidavit noted that while ₦2.5 billion was released for the construction of Government House quarters, only about ₦1.1 billion is reflected as actual spending. It also highlighted other projects with varying budget figures and expenditures, including repairs to office buildings and rehabilitation works.
The state government maintained that it does not contest SERAP’s right to access information under the FOI Act and has now compiled and made available the requested documents, thereby substantially complying with the demand.
SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, said on Tuesday that the organisation is studying the documents.
“We are analysing the spending project-by-project and will decide whether our requests for information have been fully complied with or whether a fresh request or amendment to our originating processes is necessary,” he stated.
The FOI suit, marked PHC/4153/CS/2025, was filed by SERAP on 31 October 2025 against the Rivers State Accountant-General and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. It is pending before Hon. Justice S.H. Aprioku of the Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt and has been adjourned to 19 May 2026 for further hearing.
SERAP is seeking, among other reliefs, a court determination on its entitlement to the information under the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.
