Governor Umo Eno's government in Akwa Ibom State has received at least N2.934 trillion in public funds in its first 38 months. But important financial documents do not show how this money was spent on projects and programs, an analysis by PREMIUM TIMES has revealed.
A look at Akwa Ibom State's audited financial statements, budget performance reports, and revenue records shows that while the state shares information about revenue and recurrent spending, detailed schedules for capital spending are missing from its public records.
This gap makes it hard for citizens, researchers, civil society groups, and the media to check government claims about infrastructure and see how public funds have been used.
The total revenue figure covers the time from May 2023, when Mr Eno took office, to June 2026.
An analysis of the state’s Second Quarter 2026 budget performance report shows that between January and June this year, Akwa Ibom made N394.83 billion in revenue. This does not include the N234.25 billion opening balance from the 2025 fiscal year.
The budget report says ₦334.8 billion came from the state’s share of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), ₦51.43 billion from internally generated revenue, ₦8.51 billion from grants and aids, and ₦100 million from borrowing.
A review of the state’s 2023 budget performance records and FAAC receipts shows that from May to December 2023, Akwa Ibom received ₦286.7 billion, not counting internally generated revenue or the state’s 13 percent derivation refunds for May and June 2023.
The state’s audited financial statements show that it earned ₦1.110 trillion in 2024 and ₦1.144 trillion in 2025.
Together, these records show that the Eno administration has received at least ₦2.934 trillion since it started. This amount excludes internally generated revenue and the 13 percent derivation refunds for May and June 2023 because no public records were available for those funds, suggesting that the total revenue is more than ₦2.934 trillion.
PREMIUM TIMES previously reported that in 32 months of Mr Eno's rule, the Akwa Ibom government already got more revenue than the previous administration did in eight years in this oil-rich state.
Missing Capital Expenditure Records
Despite the Akwa Ibom government often highlighting completed projects and ongoing works, the state’s financial records since the first quarter of 2025 do not provide detailed information on capital spending.
Governor Eno has often said that his administration is working on 85 “audacious projects” across the state.
During his third-anniversary media briefing, an Arise Television journalist asked the governor how his government spent the over N2.53 trillion received in 32 months.
The governor replied, “I don’t know those asking what we have done with the money. We have infrastructure; schools, model health centres that we have built, and we have 85 audacious projects on the ground that we are working on.
“When you look at our account yearly, and our budgetary performance, you see our performance.”
But a review by PREMIUM TIMES found that the state’s audited financial statements for 2023, 2024, and 2025 do not have detailed capital expenditure schedules.
The budget performance reports from the first quarter of 2025 to the second quarter of 2026 also do not show capital expenditure performance.
Before this period, Akwa Ibom’s quarterly budget reports usually had detailed information on capital spending, allowing the public to track projects against approved budgets. That kind of detail is now missing.
Other Details Omitted
Besides missing capital spending details, the report for the sixth straight quarter, from the first quarter of 2025 through the second quarter of 2026, lacks a breakdown of revenue and spending by different classifications.
The government now publishes three-page summaries that only combine figures. In 2026, it improved to five-page summaries, while reports from other states are often at least 40 pages long.
This is a big deal. Without detailed data, citizens cannot see how much each ministry earns, how revenues come in from different sources, or how spending priorities differ between areas like health and education.
Worsening Transparency Concerns
The lack of capital expenditure details means there is no official record showing the projects funded by the administration, the amounts spent on them, or which ministries and agencies are in charge.
Without this information, it is hard to verify government spending claims.
A review by PREMIUM TIMES of financial records from Nigeria’s 36 states found that Akwa Ibom is now an exception in how much detail it provides.
With Rivers State's financial disclosures affected by a political crisis, other states generally still share capital expenditure details through audited financial statements or budget performance reports.
PREMIUM TIMES has previously reported that fiscal transparency has weakened under the Eno administration as key public financial disclosures have become less detailed, with some no longer being published.
The lack of capital expenditure records also seems to go against Governor Eno’s campaign promises and the state's fiscal transparency law.
In his election manifesto, the ARISE Agenda, Mr Eno promised to “promote accountability and transparency by ensuring compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility and Public Procurement Acts.”
The Akwa Ibom State Fiscal Responsibility Law also requires the government to run its financial affairs “in a transparent manner” and ensure “full and timely disclosure and wide publication of all transactions and decisions involving public revenues and expenditure and their implications for the economy.”
But PREMIUM TIMES found that the state’s financial statements for 2023, 2024, and 2025 do not have detailed capital expenditure schedules. Furthermore, budget performance reports from the first quarter of 2025 to the second quarter of 2026 do not show capital expenditure performance, making it hard to assess project spending.
The Government is Yet to Explain the Omissions
To get answers, PREMIUM TIMES reached out to the Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Finance, Emem Bob, about why detailed capital expenditure was left out of the state’s audited financial statements and budget reports.
The commissioner told the newspaper to submit an official request, which was done. As of this report, he had not responded.
The newspaper also tried to get clarification from the Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Information through calls, WhatsApp, and SMS, but there was no response.
In its inquiry, PREMIUM TIMES asked the commissioner to explain why the financial statements for 2023, 2024, and 2025 do not have detailed capital expenditure schedules, why the budget reports for 2025 and the first and second quarters of 2026 do not show capital expenditure, and what other information that was previously shared is now missing.
The newspaper asked the Akwa Ibom State Government to provide detailed capital expenditure schedules for the three years and complete budget performance reports for the first and second quarters of 2026, showing capital spending by ministry and project.
It also wanted to know if the state had adopted a new financial reporting method that leaves out detailed capital expenditure from public documents and if the government plans to publish the missing records and restore the previous budget reporting format.
PREMIUM TIMES reminded the commissioner that Mr Eno, during his third anniversary media briefing, directed the public to check the state's financial statements and budget reports when asked how his government used the more than N2.53 trillion received in its first 32 months.
However, PREMIUM TIMES found no published capital expenditure schedules or detailed capital spending information in its review of those records. Government officials had not replied to this inquiry at the time this report was filed.
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