Rivers Assembly Issues Arrest Warrant for PAMO VC Over N29bn Funds

The Rivers State House of Assembly has issued a warrant of arrest against the Vice-Chancellor of PAMO University of Medical Sciences, Prof. Smith Jaja, over his alleged failure to appear before its ad hoc committee investigating funds allocated to the institution under the state’s scholarship programme.

The resolution followed the consideration of the report of the seven-member ad hoc committee investigating the disbursement and utilisation of funds released to PAMO University by the Rivers State Government.

The report was presented to the House on Friday by the Chairman of the committee and Deputy Speaker, Hon. Dumle Maol, during the 53rd legislative sitting.

The committee recommended that an arrest warrant be issued against the Vice-Chancellor and that the state government establish a committee to recover any unaccounted funds allegedly in the possession of PAMO University and return them to the state’s Consolidated Revenue Account.

The investigation covers funds released to the university since 2017, particularly monies provided under the scholarship programme for Rivers indigenes.

The Assembly had earlier summoned the Vice-Chancellor and several state government officials to explain how funds allocated to the university were utilised.

The summons followed the House’s decision to remove a proposed N6 billion allocation for PAMO University from the 2026 state budget after lawmakers raised questions about the management and accountability of previous allocations. The House subsequently constituted the ad hoc committee to investigate the funding of the institution.

The committee said the Vice-Chancellor failed to honour several invitations to appear before it and provide clarification on the use of the funds.

The House’s latest action comes after the committee had previously threatened to invoke its constitutional powers to compel the attendance of the Vice-Chancellor and other officials. At an earlier sitting, the Vice-Chancellor, Commissioner for Finance and Accountant-General were absent, while Commissioner for Education, Peters Nwagor, appeared before the committee.

According to the committee’s report, records presented during the investigation showed that more than N29 billion had been released to PAMO University by the state government, while lawmakers raised questions about the corresponding number of students covered by the scholarship arrangement.

The committee recommended further investigation and recovery of funds it considered unaccounted for.

The lawmakers also raised concerns over discrepancies between documents presented by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Education and the Office of the Accountant-General.

Speaking during the consideration of the report, Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule, said the intention behind the government’s scholarship agreement with the university was commendable but argued that its implementation and accountability required scrutiny.

Amaewhule said documents submitted by the various government agencies did not tally and suggested that the records required further examination.

He said that, based on the documents before the House, more than N29 billion had been released to PAMO University, while the records indicated that only about N5 billion had been utilised.

The Speaker stressed that the Assembly was determined to exercise its oversight responsibilities and ensure accountability in the management of public funds.

He said the House would pursue what it considered to be the right course of action irrespective of the individuals or institutions involved.

The Assembly’s investigation is being conducted under its constitutional powers to investigate matters relating to the administration and expenditure of public funds. Earlier reports said the committee was constituted pursuant to Section 128 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and was mandated to establish the total amount released to PAMO University, determine how the funds were utilised and identify beneficiaries of the scholarship scheme.

PAMO Challenges Assembly’s Powers

The development comes amid a legal dispute between PAMO University and the Rivers State House of Assembly over the legislature’s authority to investigate the institution’s affairs.

PAMO University and its Vice-Chancellor approached the Rivers State High Court, challenging the Assembly’s probe and the summons issued to the university’s management.

On September 23, the High Court in Port Harcourt declined an application for an interim order against the Assembly, with the substantive case adjourned for hearing on September 29.

The university’s lawyer, Chukwuma Chinwo, had previously argued that the Assembly was exceeding its constitutional powers by seeking to compel the Vice-Chancellor to appear before the committee.

The Assembly, however, maintained that Sections 128 and 129 of the Constitution empower it to summon individuals and demand documents and explanations relating to its investigation of public expenditure.

PAMO University of Medical Sciences was founded by former Rivers State Governor, Dr Peter Odili, who also serves as its Pro-Chancellor.

The Assembly’s latest resolution is expected to further intensify the dispute over the university’s funding and the legislature’s oversight powers as the court considers the case.