N’Assembly to meet Tinubu over security funding, queries ‘envelope’ budgeting
Editor
ABUJA—The National Assembly has disclosed plans to engage President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over persistent funding challenges confronting security and intelligence agencies, specifically the non-release of capital allocations in the current fiscal year.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on National Intelligence, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, made the disclosure following a closed-door meeting with heads of key security and intelligence institutions at the National Assembly complex.
While acknowledging that the non-release of capital funds affects various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), Abdullahi insisted that the security sector requires immediate attention. He noted that the committee would reconvene after reviewing submissions to develop solutions for the funding gap as preparations for the 2026 fiscal year commence.
Senator Abdullahi stressed that the President’s earlier declaration of a national emergency on security must be matched with adequate financial backing to avoid becoming a mere symbolic gesture.
“Once an emergency is declared, it must be supported with funding. Otherwise, the declaration risks losing its impact,” he said.
He added that the committee might engage the President directly through the leadership of the National Assembly to formally present the concerns of both chambers and seek urgent intervention.
The lawmaker further warned that 2026 would be a critical year for Nigeria’s democracy, noting that starving security institutions of funds could create significant challenges as the country approaches the next general elections.
He maintained that sufficient financial support remains the only way for security agencies to effectively discharge their constitutional responsibilities.
On the controversial “envelope budgeting system,” Senator Abdullahi described the framework as outdated and disconnected from current national realities.
Explaining its history, he noted that the system was a temporary fiscal control measure introduced during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo amid declining oil revenues.
He argued that Nigeria now requires a needs-based budgeting approach that prioritizes institutional demands rather than allocations driven by predetermined financial ceilings.
“We should be budgeting based on needs and priorities, not simply on fixed envelopes. National realities have changed,” he said.
