The Rivers State House of Assembly has resolved to issue a warrant of arrest for the Vice-Chancellor of PAMO University of Medical Sciences over his repeated failure to appear before an Ad Hoc Committee investigating scholarship funds released to the institution by the state government.
The recommendation was contained in the report of the committee presented to the House on Friday by its Chairman, Dumle Maol, during the 53rd Legislative Sitting.
According to the committee, PAMO University received more than N29 billion from the Rivers State Government under the scholarship scheme, but the amount released was not matched by the number of students enrolled under the programme. The committee also recommended that the state government establish a committee to recover all unaccounted funds allegedly in the possession of the university and return the money to the State Consolidated Revenue Account.
A statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media to the Speaker, Martins Wachukwu, said the House considered the report following the Vice-Chancellor’s failure to honour several invitations to appear before the committee and explain how the scholarship funds were spent.
The statement read in part: “Rivers State House of Assembly deliberating on the report of its Ad Hoc Committee on the investigation of scholarship funds to PAMO University of Medical Sciences, which was presented by the Chairman of the Committee, Rt. Hon. Dumle Maol, the Rivers State House of Assembly, on Friday, at the 53rd Legislative Sitting, resolved to issue a warrant of arrest for the Vice-Chancellor of PAMO University of Medical Sciences in line with the recommendation of the Committee.”
The House also urged the state government to constitute a committee to recover all unaccounted funds in the possession of PAMO University and deposit them into the State Consolidated Revenue Account.
The resolution followed what the Assembly described as the Vice-Chancellor’s refusal to appear before the Ad Hoc Committee despite several invitations to explain how money allocated to the university under the scholarship scheme was expended.
The committee’s report further stated that the university had received more than N29 billion from the state government without corresponding student enrolment.
Commenting on the report, Speaker Martin Amaewhule said the scholarship scheme was well-intentioned but that its implementation was flawed.
He said documents obtained from the Ministries of Finance and Education, as well as the Office of the Accountant-General, contained conflicting figures and indicated that only about N5 billion of the more than N29 billion released to PAMO University had been accounted for.
The Speaker, according to the statement, reiterated the determination of the Assembly under his leadership to take appropriate action irrespective of whose interest might be affected.
Earlier this month, the Rivers State House of Assembly rejected the N6 billion allocated for scholarships to Rivers indigenes studying at PAMO University of Medical Sciences in the state’s 2026 budget.
PAMO University of Medical Sciences was founded by former Rivers State Governor, Peter Odili.