Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the management of Kebbi State’s finances has emerged as a major political issue, with the African Democratic Congress, ADC, demanding an account of funds it said accrued to the state between May 2023 and October 2025.
The dispute centres on N627.14 billion, which the Kebbi ADC says the state received during the period, and is challenging the government to account for through detailed records of revenue, expenditure and projects delivered.
The state government has rejected the allegation of financial mismanagement, arguing that projected revenue in government budgets should not be confused with money actually received into the state’s coffers.
The controversy has since widened into a political exchange involving the Kebbi ADC, the state government and the All Progressives Congress, APC, with the ruling party also questioning the financial record of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who is backing the ADC ahead of the 2027 election.
Bello Abdullahi, Director of Strategic Communications of the ADC Kebbi State Campaign Council, said the party’s N627.14 billion figure was compiled from data attributed to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the National Bureau of Statistics, NEITI and the World Bank.
“Our N627.14 billion figure is not an allegation. It is compiled from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the National Bureau of Statistics, NEITI and the World Bank, covering May 2023 to October 2025,” Abdullahi said.
He challenged the APC and the state government to produce counter-figures if they disputed the amount, arguing that listing completed projects did not answer the opposition’s demand for financial records.
“What he did not provide was the account itself: no total receipts, no breakdown, no audited figures, no procurement records, no documents,” Abdullahi said, referring to APC’s response to the allegations.
The ADC has also questioned the difference between budget projections and actual revenue and expenditure, including allocations to agriculture, work and transport, education and health.
The opposition specifically questioned about N1 billion reportedly spent on vehicle maintenance and approximately N4.6 billion on local travel and transportation, demanding details of the expenditure and the benefits derived from it.
The ADC also demanded verifiable evidence for projects on which billions of naira were allocated, arguing that citizens should be able to determine what was budgeted, approved, spent and delivered.
