The Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru, has told the National Assembly that the N1.57 trillion allocated to his ministry for the 2024 fiscal year in the budget is insufficient to fight insecurity in the country.

The minister disclosed this on Wednesday before a joint Assembly Committee on Defence to defend the ministry’s 2024 budget proposal. 

He appealed to the lawmakers to increase the allocation to his ministry given the country’s economic situation.

He said, “I appeal to the distinguished senators and honourable members to review the ministry’s budget given the prevailing economic situation to enable the ministry to function effectively.

“You are already aware of the inflationary trend and the cost of diesel, petrol, and operational costs. The overhead is low, and we urge you to support us to see how we can improve our overhead,” he pleaded.

Speaking further, the minister stated that the heads of military units consume large quantities of fuel and diesel to carry out their official duties, assuring that all funds appropriated in the budget would be judiciously used.

“Instead of fighting in one sector, the bandits or insurgents run into another sector, that was the intent of the supplementary budget, and we assure the senators that we will track this expenditure and make sure the monies appropriated will be utilised fully, and we will account appropriately,” he vowed.