Bayelsa Spends N21bn on Workers’ Salaries, Allowances in Two Months
By Jonah Fubara, YENAGOA – The Bayelsa State Government has disclosed that it spent about N21 billion on salary-related obligations, including special allowances for workers, in August and September 2026.
The disclosure was made by the Technical Adviser to Governor Douye Diri on Accounts, Treasury and Revenue, Mr Timipre Seipulo, during the state’s transparency briefing at the Treasury Building in Yenagoa.
Presenting the state’s income and expenditure profile, Seipulo said the government spent N7.8 billion on civil servants’ salaries in August, while salary-related payments, including special allowances, amounted to N13.2 billion in September.
He explained that the payments formed part of the state’s expenditure commitments during the two-month period, alongside loan repayments, grants to tertiary institutions, capital projects and other government obligations.
For August, Seipulo reported total revenue receipts of N99.250 billion, comprising N78.214 billion in net Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) receipts and other inflows from internally generated revenue, infrastructure development funds and excess crude oil refunds.
The state recorded total expenditure of N86.293 billion during the month, covering capital and recurrent payments as well as other financial obligations.
In September, the state received N56.639 billion in gross FAAC allocation. Following deductions of N882.485 million, its net FAAC receipt stood at N55.757 billion.
Additional revenue sources, including the Infrastructure Development Fund, State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER), State Security Fund and NNPC management fees, brought the state’s total receipts to approximately N84.7 billion.
The Technical Adviser also disclosed that the government spent N5.73 billion on bank loan repayments in September, while N613 million went into contributions to the Students Loan Board, Bayelsa Health Insurance Scheme and Education Trust Fund, among other obligations.
He further reported recurrent expenditure of N7.26 billion and capital expenditure of N28.36 billion for the month.
At the end of the presentation, Seipulo announced a closing balance of N59.417 billion, including funds carried forward from August.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy, Hon. Mrs Koku Ebiowou Obiyai, said the transparency briefing reflected the commitment of the Governor Douye Diri-led ASSURED Prosperity Administration to regularly account for public funds and keep Bayelsans informed about government revenue and expenditure.
She highlighted ongoing projects and programmes, including the nine-storey State Secretariat, Glory Drive, Nembe-Brass Road, State House of Assembly Complex, FIFA-standard stadium at Igbogene and Angiama-Enewari Road.
Others include community development projects, welfare-related allowances and the sustained prompt payment of workers’ salaries and pensions.
Obiyai also dismissed social media reports alleging that a section of the Nembe-Brass Road had split into two, describing the claims as misleading and urging journalists to visit the project site to establish the actual situation.
