The Nigerian Army appealed to the Federal Government to exempt it from the annual envelope budgeting being adopted by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Farouk Yahaya, made the appeal when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Army to defend the 2022 budget.
Yahaya told the panel that the sum of N579bn approved for the Nigerian Army for the 2022 fiscal year was grossly inadequate to fight terrorism and banditry in the country.
He saysIn preparing for year 2022 budget, the Nigerian Army proposed about the sum of N710bn.However, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning budget ceiling reduced it to N579bn.
This reduction would impede the capacity and tempo of the Nigerian Army in carrying out its constitutional duties particularly the ongoing war against Boko Haram terrorists and other criminalties across the country.
The National Assembly should prevail on the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to exempt the Nigerian Army from the current budget ceiling or envelope allocation system.
The army chief also says he recognized the need to boost the morale of the soldiers and that he had been doing so regularly.
