A new political crisis appears to be developing in Rivers State, as the All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the current administration led by Governor Siminalayi Fubara of mismanaging the sum of N144.28 billion received from the federal account. The APC Caretaker Committee Chairman in the state, Chief Tony Okocha, made this allegation during a visit by the party leadership to members of the State House of Assembly in Port Harcourt on Tuesday. Okocha disclosed that according to data received from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), the sum was given to the state government between June 2023 and December 2023. He expressed regret that the sum, which is over and above the internally generated revenue (IGR) of ₦10 billion, has not translated into developmental projects in the state.
Okocha warned that the party will take punitive measures against any of its members who are involved in the ongoing squandering of the state’s resources. He said, “We have received data on the sum received by the Rivers State government from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee from June 2023 to December 2023. Our findings revealed that the whopping sum of ₦144,281,667,791.71 was given to the Rivers State government from the federation account under the current governor.
We regret this large amount has not been used for development in the state. Instead, we see heavily funded street processions with media presence in support of unnecessary political leanings. We want to warn that as a party, we will not hesitate to punish any member of our party who is involved with these looters of our commonwealth.”
The Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule, thanked the APC leadership for the visit, saying it will strengthen the members of the House.