Defence Minister Mohammed Abubakar has requested the House of Representatives to provide an additional 50 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) in the 2025 budget to flush out bandits.

Mr Abubakar made the request on Tuesday at the 2025 budget defence session organised by the House Committee on Defence in Abuja.

He said that with the equipment, the fight against banditry in the country would be over in two months.

“If we are able to have 50 APCs that can go into the bush to flush out those criminals. I assure you that within two months, we will finish the issue of banditry, but there is no provision for that in the 2025 budget,” said the minister.

He said that the ministry ought to provide equipment for some zones but could not due to inadequate funding and that it could only provide 20 APCs, “but what can 20 APCs do?”

“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 said.

The minister said there was a need to review the ministry’s budget to also provide for the welfare of officers and men of the military.

He said N20 billion is required to address the backlog of the Group Life Insurance for military personnel.

Mr Abubakar said the ministry has not been able to pay some entitlement for military personnel in theatres of operations, urging the House to squeeze and add more funding to the ministry.

In his remarks, the committee chairman, Benson Babajimi (APC-Lagos), said the committee would consider the request.

“National Assembly has consistently prioritised the defence sector in the national budget, with increased allocations in recent years.

“However, with these enhanced resources comes a heightened expectation for prudent, transparent and impactful utilisation,” he said.

The chairman urged all defence agencies to prioritise strategic initiatives that align with national security objectives.

(NAN)