Rivers State Government has assured the citizenry that the 2025 Budget would be accessible and readily available to members of the public.
Speaking to newsmen last Thursday in his office, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Peter Medee, stated that the era where budgets are shrouded in secrecy are over, adding that the new administration is poised to run an open and transparent Government.
“One thing I will assure Rivers people is that for the past eight years, nobody has seen the budget of Rivers State. I can assure you that from the next budget, our budget is going to be in public domain and everybody will be able to track what this government will be doing, so that you know that this government has no hiding place, this government is a transparent government, this government is a dedicated government, this government is a committed government and that is why we cannot hide our budget”, Medee assured.
He stressed that to add value to the State is for the ministry to remain committed and dedicated and work in time line, adding that one thing that is specific and crucial is that lots of the ministry’s assignment has time lines and “how we meet up with these timelines becomes our focus, objectives and set goals as a ministry, such that Rivers State will not be missing in the comity of states.
“We need to have relationship with donor agencies, the World Bank, international and financial institutions. Whatever we are going to do is to ensure that Rivers State is put on the part of sustainable growth and development and not growth that will not be sustainable”.
The Commissioner explained that the just-concluded economy submit in the State was to create a sustainable economy pathway where all will pass, noting that anybody that knows his way can never miss it.
“Yes, we have done a lot in the State in past years in time of trial and error, but this is no longer time for trial and error. This is a time where government is going to be dedicated and committed to a plan that is laid out”, he added.
Medee frowned at a situation in which budgeting in the State was tied to national aggregates such as inflation, whereas in Rivers State, unemployment is an aggregate that lives with almost everyone in the State.
He said, “So I can assure you that we are not going to overdepend on national aggregate, but we are going to look at the aggregate as it applies to us; what is our rate of unemployment, what can we do to grow the State in time of job creation, capacity building, industrialization; what are we going to do in these specific areas to ensure these pathways are achieved?”
The Budget and Economic Planning boss explained that there would be more focus on some sectors such as agriculture, human capital development, and insecurity, to tackle unemployment.
“One of the core things we are going to do is to make sure our budget is tied to job creation that will add value to Rivers State as it will not only increase productivity, but also solve the problem of unemployment, and as you solve unemployment, you solve the problem of insecurity, thereby increasing the output of goods and services in the State to boost the aggregate demand of our people”, he stated.
Dr. Medee also emphasized on the importance of delivering projects within the stipulated timeline.
“You know we are coming to serve a government that is very dedicated and very committed, a government that wants to plan, not a government that will be juggling doing trial and error.
“This is a government that wants to plan and to say look, before I do this what has been the plan and what would be the plan and what we are going to do according to the plan?
“We are going to be implementing and monitoring this plan, so we are going to do a lot in terms of budgeting, in terms of budget performance and in terms of budget revenue.
“In all, the essence of our assignment here is to be able to see how we can deliver value to Rivers State”, the Commissioner said.

By: Susan Serekara-Nwikhana