Senate, yesterday, revealed that the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, and other key functionaries would defend the state’s 2025 budget before the Joint National Assembly Ad hoc Committee overseeing the Emergency Rule in Rivers State.

The upper chamber also assured Nigerians that it was determined to ensure the people of Rivers State “are not shortchanged due to the declaration of emergency rule by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on March 18.”

The Leader of the Senate/Chairman, Senate Ad-hoc Committee to Oversee Emergency Rule in Rivers State, disclosed this at the inaugural meeting of the committee held in the New Senate Wing, National Assembly Complex, Abuja, yesterday.

Among others, the inaugural meeting was attended by the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Tahir Munguno; Deputy Chief Whip, Senator Peter Nwebonyi; Chairman, Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Adamu Aliero; Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa; Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Senator Adetokunbo Abiru and Chairperson, Senate Committee on Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Senator Oluranti Adebule.