Rivers 2025 budget gets Senate nod for second reading

The Nigerian Senate, on Wednesday, passed the 2025 budget of Rivers State for a second reading.

The proposed budget, amounting to N1.48 trillion (₦1,480,662,592,442), was read by Senate Leader Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele.

While presenting the budget, Senator Bamidele noted that the Senate had assumed legislative authority over Rivers State following the declaration of a state of emergency in the region.

During deliberations, Senator Solomon Adeola Olamilekan emphasized the urgency of passing the budget to ensure the people of Rivers State feel the impact of governance, especially during the ongoing political and administrative challenges.

He said, “Mr President, I don’t know under what topic this document is christened but I could see it is about a budget of the state of emergency.

I hereby support that the budget be passed for second reading so that the people of Rivers can feel the presence of government.

In absence of opposition to the bill, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio passed the budget through voice vote and referred it to the Ad-hoc Committee on overseeing Rivers State of Emergency.