By,Dr. Patrick Akhere Ebojele
Governor Monday Okpebholo has renewed his commitment to strengthen financial discipline, reduce revenue leakages and ensure that money generated by government institutions is properly accounted for. This explains his decision for the Revenue Consolidation Account (Establishment and Operation) Law, 2026.
The law is a central part of the administration’s effort to tighten control over public revenue and end the fragmentation of government funds across the myriads of ministries, departments, agencies and parastatals in Edo State.
Before now, government agencies across the state operated separate revenue accounts through which they collected licensing fees, permits, fines and several other charges. Such arrangements were necessary for administrative convenience. However they also created gaps in oversight and made it difficult to establish a clear picture of the state’s overall revenue position.
Governor Okpebholo has changed that system. Under the legislation, all ministries, departments, agencies and parastatals are required to surrender their revenue bank accounts to the Ministry of Finance within 14 days. Existing balances are to be consolidated into an approved Internal Generated Revenue account, after which the old accounts must be closed.
As explicated in the detailed announcement by the Secretary to the State Government, Umar Musa Ikhilor Esq, this requirement is backed by sanctions. Heads of agencies who fail to comply face immediate suspension pending investigation.
Governor Okpebholo’s objective is clear: revenue generated on behalf of Edo State for the people belong to the state and must be subject to a common system of control, rather than remaining under the separate discretion of individual agencies and their management.
The Revenue Consolidation Account law also gives the Edo State Internal Revenue Service a central role in revenue collection and enforcement. Agencies will no longer be able to independently and haphazardly, appoint revenue agents, establish mobile courts or prosecute revenue-related offences without the approval of the EIRS.
This will eliminate parallel revenue collection structures, which have historically made it difficult to track collections and have provided opportunities for leakages and unauthorised deductions.
For Governor Okpebholo, this reform is not simply about moving money from one bank account to another. It is a deliberate attempt to establish a very disciplined financial system in which the government can know how much revenue is being generated, where it comes from and how it is being spent.
The law therefore mandates agencies to submit revenue statements and supporting financial records covering the period from January 2025 to the Ministry of Finance, the State Auditor-General and the EIRS.
This audit requirement could prove particularly important. By establishing a record of revenue collected and the accounts through which such funds passed, the government will have a clearer basis for identifying discrepancies, recovering funds where necessary and improving future revenue planning.
The new development also changes the relationship between government agencies and the state treasury. Agencies that previously exercised considerable discretion over internally generated revenue will now operate within a more centralised financial framework, with the Ministry of Finance having greater visibility over government cash flows.
That arrangement could improve cash management and planning, but its success will depend heavily on implementation.
The 14-day deadline, for instance, is to avoid complaints that MDAs with complicated revenue systems and multiple collection points may have challenges. Hospitals, educational institutions, utilities and other large agencies now have a credible window to reconcile substantial records, transfer balances and close accounts within a reasonable period.
The government is aware that the consolidation process cannot disrupt essential public services. Agencies can still access funds required for legitimate operations while the process is on.
The legislation introduces personal responsibility for officers who authorise unauthorised revenue spending. Such officers may be held jointly liable with their agencies, strengthening the principle that public officials must account for decisions involving government funds.
This emphasis on individual accountability reflects one of the key objectives of the Okpebholo administration: to move Edo’s public finances away from informal and fragmented practices and towards a system based on transparency, control and accountability.
The reform also fits into the wider push for fiscal modernisation in Nigeria, where governments at both federal and state levels are under increasing pressure to improve internally generated revenue, reduce dependence on federal allocations and strengthen public financial management.
For Edo, however, the issue is more practical. The state government wants to know exactly how much revenue its agencies generate and ensure that such funds are captured within the state’s financial system.
Governor Okpebholo’s consolidation law is therefore a direct attempt to close the gaps created by multiple revenue accounts and competing collection structures. Its success will ultimately be measured not by the signing of the law, but by whether revenue leakages fall, collections improve and government finances become easier to monitor.
In the coming months, the administration will be turning the law into an effective working system, in a way and manner that gives the state stronger control over its revenue, improve accountability and provide a clearer basis for planning and delivering public services.
At its core, the reform reflects Governor Okpebholo’s objective of imposing greater financial discipline on the Edo State government machinery and ensuring that public revenue is treated as a collective resource that must be centrally controlled, transparently managed and fully accounted for.
Ebojele, PhD in Public Administration and is the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State
