NASS rejects Air Force budget

By Haruna Salami

The National Assembly Joint Committees on Nigerian Air Force has rejected the 2026 budget proposal for the Nigerian Air Force.
The Chairman of the Joint Committee on Air Force, Senator Osita Ngwu said the Committee “unanimously reviewed the presentation by the Air Force and rejected the budget as proposed.
This happened on Tuesday when the Nigerian Air Force appeared before the Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Representatives at a budget session with the Nigerian Air Force on the 2025 budget performance and the 2026 budget proposal.
The reason, according to him, is that “the budget is inadequate and insufficient to fund the Nigerian Air Force in maintaining the level of firepower and air capability required to curb insurgency at this critical time in the country”.
The committee consequently set up a six-man committee that will liaise with the Federal Government, the Budget Office, and the leadership of the National Assembly to work out a realistic budget that can be presented for consideration and approval of the Joint Committee on the Air Force.
The committee urged the Federal Government to give maximum cooperation at this point, adding “Nigerians urgently need effective action against insurgency”.
Although about 70 per cent of the 2025 capital budget was rolled over to 2026 for Federal Government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) as government’s policy due to funding constraints, the chairman maintained that a significant portion has still not been funded.
He said their decision is therefore based on the premise that whatever funding is provided in the 2026 budget “must be sufficient to adequately support the operational needs of the Nigerian Air Force”.
Speaking in a similar vein, Co-chairman of the committee Rt. Hon. Kabiru Alhassan said “the Nigerian Air Force requires substantial funding to effectively combat insurgency, banditry, and other criminal activities across the country.