Tensions are brewing between lawmakers and the Rivers State administration as the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Rivers Oversight picked holes in the state’s freshly approved 2025 budget.

Just days after the Senate gave its nod to the state’s N1.48 trillion appropriation bill, the committee, chaired by House Majority Leader, Julius Ihonvbere flagged what it described as troubling expenditures, chief among them the N24 billion for CCTV installation, N30 billion for gunboats, and a vague N23 billion labeled under “contingency.”

Speaking during a budget defence session in Abuja on Monday, Ihonvbere raised concerns over the lack of clarity and documentation surrounding the figures,whilst accusing the state’s Sole Administrator, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd), of presenting a budget without the legally required Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a red flag that lawmakers said cannot be ignored.

The breakdown of the 2025 budget shows N120.8 billion slated for debt servicing, N287.38 billion for recurrent non-debt spending, and a whopping N1.077 trillion for capital projects. But it’s the security and emergency allocations that have triggered the loudest alarms.

“Who signs off N24 billion for CCTV? What kind of cameras are we installing, NASA-grade?” Ihonvbere asked, not mincing words.

“And N30 billion for gunboats; are we building a private navy? These numbers need full breakdowns and proper justification,” he added.

He also demanded transparency around the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) over the past three months, pointing out the importance of understanding cash flow amid a budget deficit.

Another key concern is why Rivers is reportedly funding federal projects without any binding reimbursement agreement with the federal government.

“Even more pressing is the silence on transfers to local governments. We want to see exactly how funds meant for the third tier of government are being managed,” Ihonvbere added.

The committee however gave Ibas a 48-hour deadline to submit detailed documentation on all queried allocations, promising full scrutiny in the name of transparency.

“We’re not here for show. We’re here to get Rivers working again,” Ihonvbere said. “The people of Rivers—no matter how far from Port Harcourt they live—deserve accountability.”

Responding on behalf of Ibas, Senior Special Assistant on Strategy and Policy, Andrew Nweke, defended the allocations, saying they were based on needs assessments conducted by relevant agencies.

He noted that the controversial CCTV funds were earmarked for modern surveillance systems around the government house, while the gunboats were intended to boost security patrols along the state’s volatile waterways.

Nweke added that the contingency allocation would address emergencies such as flooding and insecurity.

He also pledged to submit the requested documents within the stipulated time frame.