The Nigerian Senate has approved a N1.48 trillion budget appropriation for Rivers State. The 2025 budget proposal, sent by President Bola Tinubu in May, was approved during the plenary session on Wednesday after lawmakers reviewed the report from the Senate ad hoc committee on Rivers State.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio declared the bill approved after a voice vote and after it completed its third reading.
Opeyemi Bamidele, the Senate leader and chair of the ad hoc committee, delivered the report and detailed a budget framework to address urgent priorities in infrastructure, education, healthcare, agriculture, and security under the emergency administration.
According to the budget allocation, N120.8 billion is designated for debt servicing, N287.38 billion for recurrent (non-debt) expenditures, and N1.077 trillion is planned for capital projects.
Abdul Ningi, the senator for Bauchi Central, supported the bill’s passage. He raised concerns about the state’s pension deficit of N147 billion. Nonetheless, he praised the allocation of N50 billion for overdue pensions and gratuities, stressing the need for urgency and transparency in handling these funds.
“A lot of people are dependent on this pension and gratuity, and when you see a deficit of N147 billion, a sum of N50 billion is good enough, but let the committee see it as a priority — making sure that that money is out, then disbursed to the beneficiaries promptly.” He said.
During the discussions, no senator opposed the revised budget estimate. The bill is now pending presidential approval and subsequent enactment.
Ibok-Ete Ibas, the sole administrator of Rivers, said earlier this month that the budget includes provisions for the return of Siminalayi Fubara, the suspended governor of the state, along with other political officeholders.
