The Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru, has asked for funding for an additional 50 Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) in the 2025 budget to combat banditry across the nation.
The minister, represented by the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, at the budget defence session at the House of Representatives, also said the N50.44 billion total allocation to the Ministry of Defence in the 2025 budget proposal was insufficient to address the security needs of the nation.
The Federal Government allocated N50.44 billion to the ministry in the 2025 budget proposal, made up of N31.81 billion personnel, N4.90 billion overhead and N13.73 billion capital expenditures.
The minister said with the right equipment, the battle against banditry in the nation could be resolved within two months.
He said, “The Ministry of Defence is supposed to provide some equipment for some of the zones, but we cannot.
“Out of what we had in 2024, we were only able to provide just 20 Armoured Personnel Carriers but what can 20 APCs do?
“If we can have 50 APCs that can go into the bush to flush out those criminals, I assure you, within two months, we will finish the issue of banditry, but there is no provision for that in the 2025 budget.
“I believe this House will consider more funding to the Ministry of Defence so that we can be able to provide some equipment to some fresh areas of attacks”.
He also sought the support of the House Committee on Defence to approve an additional N20 billion to enable the ministry to compensate the families of deceased military personnel.
“We have non-payment and accumulated bills of group life insurance, which is very important. We have the non-payment and accumulated bills of group life insurance for military personnel which we have requested the committee for consideration.
“We need the sum of N20 billion as an additional fund for payment of families of deceased military personnel”, he said.
Addressing the committee at the National Assembly Complex, the minister called for the prioritisation of the welfare of military personnel to enable them to give their best.
He also called attention to the conditions of military barracks across the country, saying, “If you look at the budget of 2024, most of the barracks, the allocation made was zero. How do we expect the personnel of the military to perform while their living standard is inadequate?
“All the proposals we made, the allocation in 2024 was zero and these are the people that we expect to perform magic. For us in the ministry, we have a lot of challenges.
“While we look at the budget of 2025, it is just N50 billion . We have a shortfall of N18 billion from the last year’s budget. And people expect the ministry to do wonders”.
He lamented that the ministry could not pay the entitlements of those in the theatres of operations.
“This month, I had to write a letter to Mr President to pay even the presidential guard.
“I believe this committee can look into the issue of the Ministry of Defence to see how they can squeeze out additional funding for the ministry”, he said.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Defence, Babajimi Benson, reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to ensuring effective resource allocation to empower the nation’s defence sector.
“This exercise remains a cornerstone of our legislative responsibility, ensuring the efficient allocation of resources to bolster national security”, he stated.
Benson who represents Ikorodu Federal Constituency, Lagos State, stressed the importance of fiscal transparency and accountability in the use of allocated funds.
“With these enhanced resources comes a heightened expectation for prudent, transparent, and impactful utilisation. Every naira must be judiciously spent to strengthen the operational capacity of the Armed Forces and deliver tangible results”, he said.
The budget defence session, according to the Lagos lawmaker, comes at a time when Nigeria is facing evolving security threats that demand heightened vigilance and inter-agency collaboration.
He urged defence agencies to adopt strategic initiatives focused on measurable outcomes, operational efficiency, and the integration of modern technologies.
