…Demands Inclusion of National Honours Funding
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 embarrassingly inadequate for a ministry with nationwide responsibilities and strategic importance.
The decision followed a tense budget defence session chaired by Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan (Borno Central), during which lawmakers openly expressed outrage over the exclusion of funding for National Honours—despite presidential approval for a fresh batch of awardees.
Minister Zephaniah Bitrus Jisalo had barely concluded his presentation when senators began questioning the glaring disparity between the ministry’s expansive mandate and its limited capital releases.
Distinguished Senator Abdul Ningi voiced strong dissatisfaction, saying he pitied the minister for leaving the legislature to head what he described as a ministry being systematically weakened by bureaucracy.
“Mr. Chairman, here in the legislature, Special Duties is a highly ranked committee in the National Assembly, and I’m sure the Minister understands what I’m saying. But here we have a Federal Ministry of Special Duties that in 2025 had a total budget of ₦5.2 billion, and only ₦1.8 billion was released.
“Now the question is: is this ministry only meant to pay salaries? Don’t they have a job to do? Why should a ministry as important as Special Duties be asked to stay away? I’m sorry to say that bureaucracy in the Ministry of Special Duties has been used as a camouflage. Not your fault,” Ningi said.
He drew laughter when he remarked that some local government councillors in his constituency controlled larger annual budgets than the federal ministry, adding that he had personally commissioned projects worth over ₦17 billion for a single council chairman in Delta State.
Committee Chairman Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan questioned whether the Federal Executive Council truly considered Special Duties a national necessity or merely an appendage, citing the ₦5.2 billion appropriated in 2025, from which only ₦1.8 billion was eventually released.
The sharpest criticism, however, came from Senator Onawo, who condemned the absence of adequate funding for National Honours—one of the ministry’s core statutory responsibilities. He described it as unacceptable that deserving Nigerians could not be decorated simply due to lack of funds to produce medals.
The minister acknowledged the funding shortfall, explaining that the ministry lacked resources to produce the honours and had therefore sought the Senate’s intervention. Lawmakers were further alarmed to learn that of the ₦240 million released for capital expenditure in 2025, the ministry recorded zero expenditure, zero balance, and zero execution.
The committee ruled that the omission of the presidential list of awardees from the 2026 budget proposal rendered the submission incomplete and unacceptable.
Senator Kaka directed the minister to return to the Budget Office of the Federation to ensure that the National Honours allocation is properly captured in the revised proposal. He warned that failure to comply by Monday would compel the Senate to summon officials of the Budget Office under its constitutional oversight powers.
