RismadarVoice Reporters
January 15, 2026
The Budget Office of the Federation has refuted recent claims suggesting that the North East Development Commission (NEDC) operates a ₦246 billion “salaries budget,” describing the assertion as misleading and inaccurate.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Director General Tanimu Yakubu said the ₦246.77 billion reflected against NEDC in the 2025 budget is not exclusively for personnel costs. Rather, it is a statutory lump-sum provision, consistent with standard budget preparation practices for statutory and quasi-statutory bodies under the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF).
Yakubu explained that where agencies do not submit complete internal economic breakdowns during budget preparation, allocations may temporarily appear under the Personnel Cost heading as a technical placeholder.
He also addressed claims regarding capital expenditure, noting that the ₦2.70 billion cited publicly represents National Assembly-approved rephrasing of capital votes in the 2025 budget, with around 70 per cent carried forward into the 2026 fiscal year.
Yakubu stressed that this legislative adjustment does not indicate a lack of development projects.
“The suggestion that ₦244 billion is earmarked solely for personnel costs is factually incorrect,” the statement said, adding that NEDC projects cover agricultural support, food security initiatives, orphanage construction, IDP camp rehabilitation, boreholes, security logistics, and constituency-level development interventions.
Yakubu further highlighted that personnel costs are necessary for the commission to function effectively, funding engineers, project managers, procurement officers, monitoring and evaluation teams, and fiduciary oversight staff.
The Budget Office affirmed that the NEDC operates under robust accountability frameworks, including MTEF guidelines, annual Appropriation Acts, National Assembly oversight, quarterly budget reporting, and statutory audits.
“The claim that NEDC exists merely to pay salaries is unfounded,” Yakubu said, urging members of the public and commentators to engage responsibly with fiscal information, stressing that misinformation undermines genuine accountability.
