Tag: Defence Ministry

The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd), has said that the Ministry of Defence, under the present administration, is prioritising the expansion of indigenous defence production to ensure sustainable long-term security capabilities.

He said the ongoing policy and legislative reforms are revitalising local defence industries, encouraging private sector participation, creating jobs and deepening local content while reducing dependence on foreign supplies.

Speaking on Monday at the Opening of the National Symposium/Lecture Series organised in commemoration of the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day, in Abuja, the Minister noted that Nigeria was harnessing the expertise of skilled professionals at home and abroad to strengthen defence innovation and capacity building.

He said locally manufactured defence platforms now reflected the growing strength of Nigeria’s defence industrial base and its contribution to regional security and economic growth.

The minister said improved training of Special Forces and stronger collaboration with regional and international partners had enhanced intelligence sharing and operational effectiveness against transnational threats.

He added that sustained military offensives across various theatres had recorded notable successes, while improved naval operations and maritime domain awareness had curtailed criminal activities and protected critical national assets.

Musa stressed that security was a shared responsibility, calling on communities, traditional rulers, religious leaders, and local governments to support efforts to disrupt criminal networks.

He urged participants at the symposium to produce practical recommendations to further strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture and national cohesion.

The minister commended the Chief of Defence Staff, Service Chiefs, and personnel of the Armed Forces for their resilience and dedication, assuring Nigerians that the military had the resolve and capacity to defeat enemies of the state.

“Nigeria is a great nation. United and resilient, we will overcome our challenges and secure a prosperous future,” he said.

The minister paid tribute to fallen heroes who gave their lives in defence of the nation and commended serving personnel for their courage and professionalism.

He also recognised the sacrifices of families of deceased personnel, particularly widows, describing their resilience and patriotism as central to Nigeria’s national consciousness.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Mr Richard Pheelangwa, said the symposium was a solemn reminder that the true strength of a nation lies not only in weapons or strategy, but in sacrifice, shared values, collective memory, and unwavering commitment to national service.

Pheelangwa said the symposium was also a call to reflect on the ideals of unity, independence, and the future that every citizen was duty-bound to protect.

According to him, the resilience of any defence system is measured not merely by firepower, but by the quality of leadership, clarity of vision, and unity of purpose.

“As we engage in this symposium, we reaffirm our responsibility to Nigeria and to the global community to uphold peace, stability, and the highest standards of professionalism,” he said. 

A witness, Adebayo Olanrewaju yesterday, told the Federal High Court in Abuja that the Federal Ministry of Defence did not directly pay money into the shares account belonging to the former acting Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Anamekwe Nwabuoku.

Olanrewaju stated this while being cross examined by Nwabuoku’s lawyer, Harrison Quakers, before Justice James Omotosho.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) charged Nwabuoku, who served as Director of Finance and Account, Ministry of Defence, with misappropriation of funds.

He is facing a nine-count amended charge of money laundering to the tune of N868 million.

Olanrewaju, an Investment Banker and Stock Broker who works for Quantum Zenith Securities Ltd, was presented by the commission as 4th prosecution witness (PW-4) in the last adjourned date.

He had earlier told the court that he met Nwabuoku in 2016 after he had issues of shares with another company.

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According to him, following the intervention of the EFCC, the ex-AGF was able to recover his shares and transferred the same to his company to manage.

The witness identified a document the defendant used to open the account with them, dated December 8, 2023 and the court admitted the same as evidence.

Led in evidence by EFCC’s counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, the witness identified different sums, all in millions, used in purchasing more shares from different banks, including Zenith Bank, the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Guaranteed Trust Bank (GTB).

Midway into the identification of funds, Justice Omotosho urged the parties to take a date for adjournment, promising to give the case accelerated hearing.

Olanrewaju identified the remaining transfers made into the investment account adding that the defendant mandated all sale of shares made in his account.

During cross-examination, the defence counsel, Quakers, showed Olanrewaju three payments made into the shares account and asked if Nwabuoku authorised all the transactions and the witness answered in the affirmative.

The PW-4 also said all payments made into the account for the purchase of shares were transferred and not paid in cash.

He told the court that the ex-AGF claimed the funds he paid in was gotten through rents from property and dividend acquired.

He said the total stock in the defendant’s account is valued at about N200 million to N220 million.

Similarly, he said Felix Nweke, another witness in the case (PW-2), who is a director at the Office of the AGF and former deputy Director, Finance at the Federal Ministry of Defence between 2018 and 2020, did not pay money into the account.

He stated that the defendant was lucky to have moved his shares from partnership investment to their company, when he did, as the company was shut down by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) two months afterwards.

Justice Omotosho adjourned the matter until April 9 for continuation  of trial.

…as minister promises end to banditry in two months with adequate funding

The House of Representatives Committee on Defence on Tuesday resolved to increase the budgetary provision of the Ministry of Defence to sustain the success being recorded in the fight against insecurity in the country.

The committee made the decision following the adoption of a motion by a member, Philip Agbese, who commended the military for their efforts when the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, appeared to defend the Ministry’s budget for 2025.

This was as Matawalle said the sum of N50 billion allocated for the Ministry in the 2025 budget was inadequate and appealed for an upward review.

He assured with adequate funding the problem of banditry will be addressed in two months.

Agbese, who moved the motion said: “I am moving the motion before this committee Mr Chairman that we should grant explicit approval to the request that he has made is a fact that one time we saw the Honourable Minister and the Chief of Defence Staff leading our troops to the north-west to confront the bandits. 

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“Initially when we saw it on television we thought it was the usual political engagement by our leaders to just give us photographs and videos that will appeal to the masses. But two, three weeks after that time we saw that some of the notorious bandit leaders after that visit were killed, some were captured by our troops which attest to the importance of that visit. 

“So the ministry is really, really doing well. I want to attest to that and it is because we don’t clap here, I would have asked Mr. Chairman that we should clap for the minister and what they are doing. So in line with that protocol, having established that Mr. Chairman, I want to move a motion before this parliament first to commend the Honourable Minister for what the military are doing in the northwest and across the country particularly in Benue State.

“We used to have issues of farmers herders crisis before now. Since he came on board in the last two years we have not had this problem anywhere in Benue. We give credit to Mr. President and the to the capable Minister that he has appointed and what the service Chiefs are doing. So I’m rising to move this motion that we should grant their request and find a way to even add more support so that they can do more in 2025.”

Earlier, the minister had lamented the inadequacy of the funds provided for the Ministry in the 2025 budget proposal.

He said: “We have some challenges. One, we have an inadequate budgetary provision. The headquarters and civilian personnel unit are unable to meet their obligations resulting in the accumulation of debt on services and staff entitlement.

“We have non-payment and accumulated bills of group life Insurance, which is very important. The very important issues that we have is non-payment and accumulated bills of group life insurance for military personnel, which I requested from the committee for consideration of maybe the sum of 20 billion as an additional funds for payment of families of deceased military personnel. That is one of our challenges. 

“Mr. Chairman, if you look at the budget of 2024, most of the barracks, the allocation we met is zero. How do we expect the personnel of the military to perform while their living standard is inadequate? All the provisions that we made, the allocation in 2024 is zero. And these are the people that we expect them to perform magic.

“And for us in the ministry, we have a lot of challenges. Look at the budget of 2025, just N50 billion. We have a shortfall of N18 billion of the last year’s budget and people expect the ministry to do wonders. 

“I was in Sokoto. I went to Sokoto by myself. Nobody sponsored me to go to Sokoto. I did it just to ensure people’s sleep with two eyes closed. My colleague Badaru went to Zamfara and Katsina and it was the same thing because there is no provision in the budget. 

“In fact, the Ministry of Defence is supposed to provide some equipment for some of the zones, but we cannot. Out of what we have in 2024, we were be able to provide just 20 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs).

“What can 20 APCs can do? In Katsina alone, if we can be able to have 50 APCs that can go inside Bush to flush out those criminals, I assure you, within two months, we’ll finish the issue of banditry. But there is no provision for that. People have been complaining that money is being given to defence but this is what we have. And people are expecting us to do extra things out of the budget. 

“We cannot do it Mr. Chairman. So I believe this House will consider more funding to the Ministry of Defence so that even on our own as ministers we can be able to provide some equipment to some flush out these areas of attacks. 

“Insecurity is all over the country. If you go to South West, South East, North East, North Central, North West. But if you look at the budget of 2025, N50 billion to the Ministry of Defense. 

“Other people outside are thinking that the whole money of Nigeria is going into the Ministry of Defense. It is not like that. You know about that. We could not renovate any barracks in 2024. We have a lot of complaints. We cannot be able to pay some of their entitlement, the military.

“They are into theatres, operations, we cannot pay. In fact, this month, I had to write a letter to Mr. President to pay even the presidential guards. The money was not there. So, Mr. chairman, I believe this committee can look into the issue of the Ministry of Defence to see how you can be able to squeeze and add more funding to the ministry so as at least you can expect more from us.”

He, however, promised that despite the fact that with the limited resources, the ministry and the personnel are doing their best to ensure the safety of all citizens.

Chairman of the committee, Rep Babajimi Benson, said the importance of the defence sector cannot be overstated as it is the backbone of the nation’s security architecture, tasked with addressing diverse threats that challenge our peace and stability. 

He said over the years, the Armed Forces of Nigeria have demonstrated remarkable commitment and professionalism, achieving significant progress in countering insurgency, terrorism, banditry and other forms of insecurity.

He said the dynamic nature of these challenges demands continuous adaptation and innovation.  

Benson said recognizing this, the National Assembly has consistently prioritized the defence sector in the national budget, with increased allocations in recent years.

He said, however, with these enhanced resources comes a heightened expectation for prudent, transparent and impactful utilization. 

“As representatives of the people, it is our duty to ensure that every naira is judiciously spent to strengthen the operational capacity of the Armed Forces and deliver tangible results,” he said. 

Nigerians should unite behind President Bola Tinubu as military operations against terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping have reached an advanced stage, according to Dr. Ibrahim Abubakar Kana, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence.

Dr. Kana noted that President Tinubu has successfully unified Nigeria’s security architecture and resources to tackle the nation’s security challenges.

Speaking at the Stakeholders Engagement organized by Nigeria Communications Satellite Ltd. (NigComSat) in Abuja, he praised the military and security agencies for their efforts in safeguarding Nigeria’s territorial integrity and restoring lasting peace.

Dr Kana said the ongoing military operations against Boko Haram terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers especially in the Northeast and Northwest have reached an advanced stage with the deployment of sophisticated satellite assets, military equipment, and weapons that would soon finish up the activities of non-state actors and criminals holding the country hostage.

He added that the administration of President Tinubu needs the support of Nigerians to boost the morale of troops and provide further intelligence on the activities of criminals in the local environments.

Dr Kana said for instance, satellite assets are being deployed to provide geospatial information on the location of troops, the terrain and the positions of the enemies and their hideouts. He said such capability and facilities would substantially reduce casualties on the sides of the Nigerian troops.

The Stakeholders Engagement was attended by top military Officers from the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), the Nigeria Army, the Nigeria Air Force, NAF, the Nigeria Navy and the Nigeria Space Defence Administration, amongst others.

Dr Kana said: “Right now, we have moved from normal military operations to advanced military operations. We now use drones. We need a satellite to do that. Our troops have to identify where our enemies are. As it is now, without satellites, we cannot operate our drones.

“There will be pollution, or rather, what you call accidents, you know, among the drones in the space. Therefore, we need satellites to do that operation.”

He emphasised that President Tinubu has been able to bring all stakeholders together under a Council, stressing that the capability of the stakeholders and the commitments/support of Nigerians would soon put an end to the security challenges.

“I want to use the opportunity to thank His Excellency, Mr President, for bringing us together and making sure that we all work together and providing all the requirements, particularly launching of more satellites in space”, the Permanent Secretary said.

Speaking on the commitments of the military, Dr Kana said: “I think the least we can do is to say thank you to the military for working day and night. If you come out in the night around the streets of the whole country, you see the military working. So the military is working.

“The military is doing very well. But we also need the civilian population, not only the military, to help in addressing the security challenges of our country. It’s not purely a military affair. It is also a social affair. You and I have a role to play. “

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NigComSat, Mrs Jane Egerton-Idehen said the Nigeria Satellite Week was being organised to bring all stakeholders together to explore the huge socio-economic potentials in the satellite industry.

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Mrs Egerton-Idehen said within the past year, several initiatives and programmes have been launched by NigComSat to enable improvement in its services and earn more revenue for the government.

Mrs Egerton-Idehen said: “So our target in terms of penetration levels in conjunction with other agencies is 75 percent. Therefore, we want to move the nation’s broadband penetration from where it used to be about 45 to 75 percent

“We want to dominate this market. This is how we set this market. We see a future where 70% of our revenue will come from the Nigerian market. We see a future where in the satellite sector.

“Because right now there are so many private sector operators here. But the truth is a lot of people they serve are government agencies.”