… Move to inflate existing projects with over 500 billion alleged
By: Joy Musa
As Rivers State approaches the expiration of its emergency rule on September 18, a wave of controversy has erupted over alleged last-minute financial maneuvers by the outgoing Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.). Multiple sources have raised alarm over what they describe as a coordinated scheme to inflate contract sums on landmark infrastructure projects potentially siphoning off hundreds of billions of naira from the state’s coffers.
According to insider reports, construction giants including Julius Berger, MCC, and Craneburg have been pressured to accept unsolicited and inflated revisions to their existing contracts. These revisions, reportedly orchestrated by the administrator’s associate, Andy Nwoke, are said to increase project costs by up to 80%, with the Ring Road project allegedly ballooning to ₦450 billion and the Trans-Kalabari Highway to ₦380 billion.
Sources claim the contractors were warned that refusal to accept the revised figures would result in immediate cancellation of their contracts. The alleged plan involves advance payments on the inflated sums, which contractors are then expected to remit to intermediaries linked to the administrator and a top-ranking federal official from Rivers State. The justification offered for the scheme is purported funding for the presidency’s 2027 ambitions a claim civil society groups have dismissed as a smokescreen for looting.
“This is not just financial recklessness it’s economic sabotage,” said a spokesperson for a coalition of Rivers-based civil rights organizations. “We are witnessing an attempt to drain the state’s resources under the guise of development. These projects were already budgeted and paid for. The sudden increments are fraudulent.”
The Rivers State House of Assembly complex, nearly completed under the elected governor’s administration, is also reportedly targeted for an unnecessary ₦80 billion expansion. Activists argue that these moves are designed to mask the diversion of funds under the pretense of project enhancement.
Human rights lawyers and advocacy groups have called for the immediate arrest of Vice Admiral Ibas and Andy Nwoke, warning that failure to act could result in irreversible damage to the state’s finances. Plans are underway for mass protests and awareness campaigns aimed at drawing the attention of President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly, and the broader Nigerian public.
“This is a defining moment for Rivers State,” said constitutional lawyer Angus Chukwuka. “The people must rise to defend their wealth and demand accountability. The emergency rule must not become a license for impunity.”
As the countdown to the end of emergency rule continues, all eyes are on Rivers State. The unfolding scandal threatens to overshadow the transition back to democratic governance and raises urgent questions about oversight, transparency, and the future of public trust in leadership.
