A group, Rivers United for Tinubu 2027 has called out the outgoing Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd) over the thanksgiving church service he scheduled for Sunday, September 14, 2025, at the State Ecumenical Center to mark the end of the emergency rule in the state.
In a statement on Saturday signed by Clifford Amadi-Okanezi, director publicity and communications, the group berated the administrator for running the state aground for the period he has been in charge.
The statement entitled: “Thanksgiving or whitewash? Rivers people deserve accountability, not empty ceremonies” partly reads: “Our attention has been drawn to a circular currently making the rounds regarding a proposed thanksgiving service being organized by the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.), scheduled for Sunday, September 14, 2025.
“While it is undoubtedly a noble thing to thank God for the gift of life and for the air we breathe, it is equally important to call out those who attempt to use religion as a cloak for questionable conduct and mismanagement of public trust
“The question that naturally arises is: what exactly is the sole administrator calling Rivers people to thank God for? Is it for the growing hardship in the state due to the non-payment of salaries as at when due, or the unprecedented deductions from local government allocations?”
The group recalled that during the recently held Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) meeting, Rivers local government chairmen openly rejected the cheques issued to them by Vice Admiral Ibas following the deduction of over ₦1 billion per local government, amounting to more than ₦23 billion in total.
According to the group, this comes on the heels of an earlier ₦200 million deduction from local government accounts in July 2025. These actions, the group pointed out have left workers and institutions stranded, while governance has ground to a halt at the grassroots.
In addition, the group said Ibas has claimed to have awarded a contract for the renovation of the state secretariat without disclosing the contract sum or process, raising serious questions about transparency.
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“He also announced that he saved ₦5 billion from an ongoing biometric verification exercise, an exercise that has not been concluded, with salaries still unpaid. How such a staggering figure could have been saved remains a puzzle, especially when Rivers workers are yet to see relief,” it added.
The group maintained that for the past six months, Rivers people have endured hardship, opacity and questionable financial practices under this sole administration, stressing that it is ironic that the same administration now seeks to gather the people at the Ecumenical Centre for a thanksgiving.
“Let it be clearly stated: Rivers people will indeed give thanks not at a stage-managed ceremony, but in their churches and homes, in gratitude for the imminent end of this administration and in hope for justice and accountability. Any thanksgiving organized by Vice Admiral Ibas under these circumstances can only be described as a mockery of God, democracy, and the good people of Rivers State.
“We call on Vice Admiral Ibas to enjoy his final days in office alongside his allies, including the acting head of service, knowing full well that their names are already inscribed on the painful and ignoble side of our history. Rivers people will not forget,” the group said.
