A group of 60 Federal Lawmakers known as the G60 and the South/South Youths have lauded the achievements of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, describing his first year in office as phenomenal and unmatched. They praised his administration’s infrastructure developments as clear evidence of his capability despite attempts to distract him.
In a joint statement signed by Comrade Jaja Johnson, the G60 and South/South Youths acknowledged that Governor Fubara faced political crises, which delayed his governance start to just three months ago when he challenged ‘Emperor’ Nyesom Wike. Nevertheless, his accomplishments in infrastructure and social services have already surpassed those of some previous administrations.
The statement highlighted the multibillion-naira Port Harcourt Ring Road, Omoku, and Kalabari Super Highway projects, noting that these initiatives are redefining road construction with over half a trillion naira invested.
“In less than 365 days, Governor Sim Fubara’s administration has committed over half a trillion naira to just three mega road projects, among many others that are progressing rapidly, some nearing completion,” the statement read. “For an administration to commit N501.2bn to only three roads in one year despite vicious distractions is an uncommon feat.”
The Port Harcourt Ring Road, which was signed off in July 2023 as the biggest project, will link rural areas to the state capital. Before the end of his first year, Governor Fubara signed off on an even larger project, the much-anticipated Trans Kalabari Highway, costing over N225.1 billion.
Additionally, the Rivers Executive Council has approved N80.886 billion for the construction of the 33.5km Elele-Omoku road project, which will traverse three local government areas: Ikwerre, Emohua, and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni.
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Just last weekend, the Ogoni-Andoni-Opobo Unity Road project, initiated by former Governor Peter Odili and completed under Fubara’s administration, was inaugurated. Governor Fubara has also committed to addressing the deteriorating state of the health sector in the next six months. At the recent Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) meeting, Rivers State was classified as below benchmark in terms of enrolments and health facility availability. Education and agriculture are also undergoing significant improvements.
Beyond infrastructure, there is a revitalisation in the civil service, with backlogs of promotions and pensions cleared and plans to employ 10,000 new workers. The administration has disbursed N4 billion to businesses in the nano, small, and medium enterprise sectors, with amounts ranging from N400,000 to N10 million each. This initiative is being executed through the Rivers State Micro Finance Agency (RIMA) in partnership with Nigeria’s Bank of Industry (BoI).
Another notable achievement is the increase in the state’s monthly internally generated revenue (IGR) from N12 billion to N27 billion since May 29, 2023, representing over a 100 percent increase. With this pace, the annual IGR is projected to reach N324 billion.
The statement concluded, “This is a clear case of thinking outside the box and rejigging the state’s internally generated revenue with transparency. Since Governor Fubara’s assumption of office, the state has consistently generated between N26 billion and N27 billion monthly. Before he took office, the highest the state received was between N12 billion and N13 billion.”
