Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State on Thursday night inspected the nearly completed ARISE Palm Resort in Uyo, riding one of the newly installed roller coasters alongside commissioners and aides as his administration pushes ahead with a multibillion-naira tourism project that has also raised transparency concerns.
In a post shared on Facebook by the governor’s spokesperson, Ekerete Udoh, the governor was seen touring the facility late Thursday and riding one of the resort’s amusement installations.
The Ibom ARISE Park and Resort, located close to the Government House in Uyo, was previously a massive ravine before the state government transformed the area into a tourism and leisure facility.
Mr Eno has repeatedly described the project as a cornerstone of his administration’s ARISE Agenda and part of efforts to position Akwa Ibom as a tourism destination.
In his 2025 New Year message, the governor said the facility would become “the best family-themed Park in the nation,” featuring children’s playgrounds, a nine-hole golf course, artificial lakes, accommodation and banquet facilities, among other attractions.
“The project is a key part of the ARISE Agenda to turn the state into a tourism hub,” the governor said at the time.
The project was awarded to Bulletin Construction in 2024 and, according to government sources, is expected to be inaugurated in September 2026.
Budget documents reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES show that the Akwa Ibom State Government earmarked N20.2 billion for the project in the 2025 revised budget and another N10 billion in the 2026 budget, bringing the total allocations for the resort to N30.2 billion within two years.
PREMIUM TIMES could not find a budget allocation for the project in 2024, the year the project commenced.
Despite the huge public spending on the project, details of the contract, including procurement documentation, contract sums and bidding records, are not publicly available, including on the state’s procurement portal.
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This conflicts with Section 54(5) of the Akwa Ibom State Public Procurement Law, which mandates the government to “promptly and routinely publish procurement information on the electronic portal established by the State.”
Checks by PREMIUM TIMES on the state procurement portal did not show any records for the ARISE Palm Resort project or several other government contracts.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that under Governor Eno, Akwa Ibom State has slipped deeper into fiscal secrecy.