An Armed Forces Support Trust Fund (Establishment) Bill raised by the House Committee on Defence would supply extra funding for the Nigerian Armed Forces, according to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila.
This was stated at the public hearing at the House on Monday in Abuja.
The speaker noted that the current budget structure of allocation in the armed forces leaves capital purchases with 9 percent while salaries, welfare, and overhead took the 91 percent bulk.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted him as saying, “This bill seeks to provide an injection of additional capital funding for the Armed Forces of Nigeria at a crucial time in our nation.
“I am sure many of you will wonder why the Armed Forces of Nigeria need an additional financial injection at this time.
“The fact-based on appropriation records is that about 91 per cent of the current funding to the Armed Forces go on recurrent overhead, salaries and welfare, leaving only nine per cent for capital purchases.
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“This reality has prompted this 9th House of Representatives to seek a way of providing funds that will be focused on the capital needs and training of our Armed Forces.
He added that the armed forces would need all the support in a moment where the country was working to contain insecurity plaguing parts of the country, with a flashpoint in the northeast.
Gbajabiamila said, “Nigeria is at war against insurgency, terrorism, kidnapping and all manner of insecurity; hence the need to uplift the resources available to our armed services to enable them to procure the best tools to help win this war.
“So, what we seek to do in this bill is not new or unique to us as a nation; the solution to our security challenges requires asymmetric actions across many policy areas. This is what we have tried to do as the representatives of the people.
“The concept of a trust fund already exists for the Nigerian Police; it only makes sense to also bolster our military capability as well through this unique vehicle.”
Bolstering the words of the speaker, the Chairman of the House Committee on Defence, Benson Babajimi (APC-Lagos) in the House compared what the country’s armed forces received to those of countries like South Africa ($3.1 billion), Morocco ($4.8 billion), and Algeria ($9.7 billion).
Babajimi assured Nigerians of the House’s commitment to ensuring their security, according to NAN.
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