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Editorial
September 18, 2025 by Editorial
- Shall we know the names of the treasury predators in Rivers State?
It was a stunning announcement, and only hinted at something rotten not only in Rivers State, but the nation at large.
The outgoing sole administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas let the world know that the finances of the state were not always above board. He undertook a verification exercise of the staff of the civil service and discovered that N5 billion could not be connected to any real human being or worker.
“This verification exercise has enabled us to distinguish genuine staff from impostors on the payroll. The N5 billion saved is not just a figure; it is a testament to our commitment to fiscal responsibility. These funds will now be strategically invested in critical infrastructure and social projects to accelerate the sustainable development of Rivers State,” said Ibas.
He made the revelation without theatrics. The scandal is not only that the amount is huge but that the state greeted the disclosure with indifference and silence. It can only be described as a disgrace that a state, known for its quicksand of agitation and critics about the political society, has kept complete silence over this.
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Even the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), also caught in a scandal of its own connected with the government of the state under its governor, Sim Fubara, has not found the lip or tongue to articulate an opinion. No one has asked for the books, the names of the investigators, the felons who committed that gargantuan crime against the people.
Yet we must say the revelation fell short of details. It is not enough for the sole administrator to say who perpetrated the crime; the nation wants some answers arising from this discovery.
One, how long has this been going on? Five billion naira is no breakfast gift. It is money that can make a difference in the life and fortune of the average citizen of the state or anywhere in the world.
We want more details on how long this has been going on to ascertain the scale of this fraud against the people. Did it start in August alone? Was it only during the tenure of Fubara, or did it predate him? If it did, how far back can it be traced?
The second issue concerns who are the criminals? This sum of money cannot disappear from the financial system without a conspiracy. The sole administrator’s shyness from dramatics should not restrain us from asking him to go a little further in the revelation.
He should let us know how these ghost workers were paid, who initiated those names, who backed them up or legitimated them. Did the governor or governors know this? Was it a work of politicians? If it is the work of politicians, they cannot do it without the civil servants. Who were the civil servants?
We need to also ask why the civil society has not asked any questions. We must learn to look ourselves in the mirror in matters like this. The last time a furore of this nature seized the nation’s imagination was when President Bola Tinubu was the governor of Lagos State, and deployed the Oracle technology to audit the staff. So much money and names were unaccounted for, and when the governor asked those who had not received their pay to show up, not a single soul appeared. The ghosts had returned to the cemetery.
If N5 billion is dedicated to a community to build roads, homes, clinics each month, the people would not feel the distance between promise and welfare in the state. We want other states to do the same. It is not only a scandal; it would be a promise. It is only a promise if other states do what Ibas has done.
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