The Senate Committee on Special Duties has rejected the 2026 budget proposal of the Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-governmental Affairs, describing the allocation as grossly inadequate for a ministry with national scope and strategic responsibilities.
The rejection followed a tense budget defence session chaired by Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan (Borno Central), during which lawmakers expressed strong dissatisfaction over the exclusion of funds for National Honours, despite presidential approval for a fresh batch of awardees.
Minister of Special Duties, Zephaniah Bitrus Jisalo, had barely concluded his presentation when senators began questioning what they described as a glaring mismatch between the ministry’s wide-ranging mandate and its modest capital releases.
Senator Abdul Ningi voiced concern over what he termed the systematic suffocation of the ministry by bureaucracy. He remarked that he pitied the minister for leaving the legislature to head what appeared to be an underfunded and constrained ministry.
“Mr Chairman, here in the legislature, Special Duties is a highly ranked committee, and I’m sure the Minister understands what I’m saying. But here we have a Federal Ministry of Special Duties whose total 2025 budget was N5.2 billion, out of which only N1.8 billion was released.
“Is this ministry meant only to pay salaries? Don’t they have responsibilities to carry out? Why should such an important ministry be treated this way? I am sorry to say that bureaucracy in the Ministry of Special Duties has been used as camouflage. Not your fault,” Ningi stated.
He drew laughter when he observed that some local government councillors in his constituency operated with larger annual budgets than the ministry, adding that he had personally commissioned projects worth over N17 billion for a single council chairman in Delta State.
Committee Chairman Senator Lawan questioned whether the Federal Executive Council regarded the ministry as a vital national institution or merely an appendage. He noted that although N5.2 billion was appropriated for 2025, only N1.8 billion had been released.
However, the strongest criticism came from Senator Onawo, who described the absence of funding for National Honours as unacceptable. He argued that it was unconscionable that deserving Nigerians could not be decorated due to lack of funds to produce medals.
The minister acknowledged the funding challenge, explaining that the ministry currently lacked resources to produce the honours and had sought the Senate’s intervention.
Lawmakers were further displeased to learn that of the N240 million released for capital expenditure in 2025, the ministry recorded zero expenditure, zero balance, and zero project execution.
Consequently, the committee ruled that the omission of the presidential list of awardees from the 2026 budget proposal rendered it incomplete and unacceptable.
Senator Lawan directed the minister to liaise with the Budget Office of the Federation to ensure that allocations for National Honours were properly captured in the revised proposal. He warned that failure to comply by Monday would result in the Budget Office being summoned before the Senate under its constitutional oversight powers.
