National Assembly Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention Over Meagre Funding for Information Ministry

• As minister reveals only N205m released from N2.49bn capital vote in 2025

• Lawmakers warn 2026 proposal cannot sustain ministry, media agencies

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The National Assembly has resolved to meet President Bola Tinubu to demand improved funding for the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation and its agencies, following what lawmakers described as grossly inadequate budgetary releases in 2025 and a lean proposal for 2026.

The decision was taken on Tuesday by the joint committees on Information and National Orientation after the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, presented the ministry’s 2025 budget performance report.

In a startling disclosure, the minister informed lawmakers that out of the N2.49 billion capital allocation to the ministry in the 2025 Appropriation Act, only N205 million had been released — and even that, he said, was not fully cash-backed.

The revelation triggered an executive session that lasted about an hour, after which the joint committee resolved to seek the intervention of President Bola Tinubu through the leadership of the National Assembly.

The lawmakers said adequate funding had become imperative for the ministry and its agencies, including the Nigerian Television Authority, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, News Agency of Nigeria and Voice of Nigeria, to effectively enlighten Nigerians on government policies and programmes.

Chairman of the House Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values, Hon. Olushola Fatoba, who briefed journalists after the closed-door meeting, said a review of the 2026 budget proposal further heightened the committee’s concerns.

According to him, allocations proposed for personnel and overhead costs in 2026 are identical to those of 2025, despite rising operational demands, while about 70 per cent of the capital component for 2026 is merely a rollover from the previous year.

Fatoba said, “At the executive session, when we went through the 2026 budget proposal for the ministry and its agencies, we discovered that the sums earmarked for personnel and overhead costs in 2025 were the same figures proposed for 2026.

“More worrisome is that about 70 per cent of the capital component for 2026 is simply a rollover from 2025. As a joint committee, we unanimously agreed that the budget cannot be sufficient to run the ministry and its agencies effectively.”

He added that the committee would formally engage the leadership of the National Assembly to facilitate a meeting with the President, stressing that 2026 would be a critical year requiring robust public communication and citizen engagement.

“We resolved to meet the leadership of the National Assembly on the meagre budgetary proposal and plan to reach out to Mr. President to ensure that something urgent is done in terms of budgetary provisions for the ministry and its agencies in 2026,” he said.

Earlier, while presenting the performance report, the minister lamented the poor level of releases and underscored the strategic role of the ministry in rebuilding public trust and strengthening government-citizen communication.

Idris said that upon assumption of office in 2023, the ministry was confronted with what he described as a serious trust deficit between public officials and Nigerians.

He said, “When we started in 2023, what we saw was a breakdown in trust between Nigerians and public officials, whether elected or appointed. There seemed to be a level of mistrust about what public officials say and do.”

He noted that one of his core mandates was to restore credibility to government communication by ensuring honesty, transparency and consistency in public messaging.

“Our duty was to ensure that we return that trust Nigerians should have in public officials through what they say and what they do,” the minister stated.

“As Minister of Information and National Orientation, one of the major pillars I came with is to restore trust in public communication, so that whatever we say is honest, truthful and in the best interest of Nigerians. We are achieving that tremendously.”

However, lawmakers maintained that without adequate funding, the ministry and its media agencies would struggle to discharge their statutory responsibilities, particularly in countering misinformation, promoting national orientation and keeping citizens informed about government policies.

The joint committee stressed that strategic communication was indispensable to governance and national cohesion, warning that underfunding the ministry could undermine efforts to deepen democratic engagement and public enlightenment.

With the 2026 budget cycle approaching full consideration, the planned meeting with the President is expected to shape discussions on funding priorities for the information sector, as lawmakers push for a review of the current allocations to reflect operational realities.