NGScorecard

The incoming administration says it inherited an overwhelming debt burden from the outgoing Obaseki government — cited by the governor as over ₦600 billion in combined local and foreign debt, by the state's Asset Verification Committee as ₦682.57 billion, and by the state Accountant-General as over ₦1 trillion in internal debt plus ₦282 billion external, up from just ₦84 billion when Obaseki took office in 2016.

Obaseki has publicly disputed the ₦600 billion figure as inaccurate; the Debt Management Office separately reported the state's domestic debt stock fell from ₦113bn (Q4 2024) to ₦82.4bn (Q1 2025), suggesting some paydown, though the total inherited debt burden remains a matter of public dispute rather than independent reconciliation.

Governor Okpebholo says his administration inherited roughly ₦180 billion in unpaid debts owed to local contractors by the Obaseki government.

No independently verified figure for how much of this contractor debt has since been paid down was identified for this entry.

The administration says it inherited a backlog of unpaid salaries, pensions, and entitlements, including for sacked college staff.

The government released ₦2 billion for outstanding salary and pension arrears and cleared a first ₦4.6 billion tranche of entitlements owed to sacked college staff; a committee was also set up to review continuing complaints about the contributory pension scheme.

A state Administrative Panel of Enquiry into the 18 local government councils (covering September 2023 to November 2024) alleged ₦96 billion in misappropriated funds under the outgoing administration's local government structure, including ₦10.43 billion diverted through a 'Security, Environment, and Training' fund.

Governor Okpebholo petitioned the EFCC over the findings; as of the most recent information reviewed, no charges had been filed, and Obaseki's supporters have dismissed the report as a political witch-hunt.