2026 Budget: ICPC Boss Urges Enhanced Funding Before Senate, Citing Operational Needs, Staff Welfare Concerns

2026 Budget: ICPC Boss urges enhanced funding before senate, citing operational needs, staff welfare concerns. The Chairman of Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN, has made a compelling appeal to the National Assembly for a substantial increase in the Commission’s funding; arguing that without it, the agency’s capacity to fulfil its anti-corruption mandate is critically undermined.

Dr. Aliyu presented his case on Tuesday whilst defending the ICPC’s 2026 budget proposal before the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes. He detailed how severe underfunding and poor disbursement of approved allocations had crippled operations throughout 2025.

“Inadequate funding remains our most significant impediment, directly affecting our manpower, logistics, staff welfare, and overall operational effectiveness,” stated Dr. Aliyu.

The ICPC Chairman provided a stark breakdown of the 2025 financial constraints:

1. Overhead Costs: Of the N7.82 billion approved, only N2.1 billion (approximately 28%) was released.

2. Capital Expenditure: From an approved N7.3 billion, a mere N400.49 million (about 5%) was released—and only on 28 November 2025. This late, minimal disbursement prevented proper project execution and compliant procurement processes.

Despite these “severe limitations,” the Chairman highlighted the Commission’s notable achievements in 2025:

1. Recovered N33.1 billion in cash and $1.8 million, alongside other assets.

2. Filed 72 new cases and secured 36 convictions, with roughly 400 cases ongoing nationwide.

3. Received 1,107 petitions, assigning 700 for investigation and concluding 150.

4. Deployed Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecards in 344 MDAs and inaugurated 131 Anti-Corruption and Transparency Units (ACTUs).

ICPC Boss

Dr. Aliyu expressed profound concern over the low morale among staff, who undertake high-risk investigations with inadequate support. “Their dedication is commendable, but welfare is poor. Without improved funding, we cannot function effectively, and this situation risks damaging Nigeria’s global standing in corruption perception indices,” he warned.

He further noted with dismay that the proposed 2026 budget allocation for the ICPC has been reduced, despite the evident need for enhancement. Dr. Aliyu concluded by assuring the Committee of the Commission’s commitment to fiscal discipline and prudent resource management should funding be improved.

In response, the Chairman of the Senate Committee, Senator Emmanuel Udende, commended the ICPC’s recoveries and successes amidst financial hardship.

He assured Dr. Aliyu that his committee would actively engage the Senate Committee on Appropriations to advocate for an improved financial provision for the Commission.

U.S. Congress Proposes Visa Ban, Asset Freeze Against Kwankwaso, Others For Promoting Massacre Of Christians In Nigeria

U.S. Congress proposes visa ban, asset freeze against Kwankwaso, Others for promoting massacre of Christians in Nigeria. The bill named violators such as the Fulani ethnic nomad militia, Mr Kwankwaso, and Miyetti Allah members to the State Department.

The U.S. Congress has proposed a visa ban and asset freeze against former Kano governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, members of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore and other Fulani groups, among a slew of sanctions meant to pressure the Nigerian government into ending the alleged persecution of Christians.

The Congress identified Mr Kwankwaso and Miyetti Allah groups as the unrepentant violators masterminding attacks on the Christian faithful in northern Nigeria in the bill submitted on Tuesday.

Chris Smith, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, and Riley Moore submitted a proposed bill, the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026, to the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday, suggesting sanctions to keep President Bola Tinubu’s government on its toes.

The bill is aimed at mounting pressure on Mr Tinubu’s administration to curtail the targeted ki1lings of Christians, which Mr Trump has repeatedly called a “genocide”.

“The Department of State and the Department of Treasury should impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, on individuals and entities responsible for severe religious violations,” stated the bill proposed by Republican representatives Messrs Smith and Moore.

The bill named violators such as “Fulani ethnic nomad militia, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, former Kano governor, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore” to the State Department.

Kwankwaso

The bill chronicled incidents of religious violations, citing the Plateau massacre in October 2025 and the death sentence of Sunday Jackson, a farmer who spent a decade in prison and was on death row for killing a Fulani herder in self-defence. He was pardoned in 2025 after the U.S. government intervened.

Messrs Smith and Moore further proposed that the State Department scrutinise the activities of Fulani militias to determine whether the U.S. should consider them a foreign terrorist organisation.

The congressmen further called on the State Department to investigate sponsors of the Fulani militias and hold them to account.

President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria a ‘country of particular concern’ over the alleged genocide of Christians in 2025. He blamed Mr Tinubu’s administration for not protecting the Christians in the West African nation.
On Christmas Day, the U.S. launched airstrikes in Sokoto to bomb terrorists’ hideouts, an operation Nigeria’s first lady Remi Tinubu called “a blessing”.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump has announced plans to deploy 200 U.S. soldiers to Nigeria to support the West African country’s counter-terrorism efforts.

FRSC: Driver Sentenced To Prison For Driving Against Traffic On Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

FRSC: Driver sentenced to prison for driving against traffic on Lagos-Ibadan expressway. FRSC has secured a two-month jail term, without the option of a fine, for a traffic offender arrested for driving against traffic on the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway.

The Federal Road Safety Corps has secured a two-month jail term, without the option of a fine, for a traffic offender arrested for driving against traffic on the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway. The FRSC corps marshal, Shehu Mohammed, said this in a statement on Wednesday.

Mr Mohammed said the conviction was handed down by the Ojodu-Abiodun Magisterial District Court following a special joint intervention patrol launched on Monday.

He said the operation was launched to curb the persistent and dangerous practice of one-way driving along the Kara–Opic section of the expressway.
Mr Mohammed added that the illegal act had escalated due to the ongoing construction on both the inward and outward sections of the corridor.

“Disturbed by the increasing recklessness and the attendant risk of avoidable road traffic crashes, the Lagos sector commander, corps commander Kehinde Hamzat, initiated the joint intervention.

“The patrol was done in collaboration with the Ogun State sector command, the corridor commander, and officers of the Nigeria Police (Warewa, Ojodu-Abiodun and Isheri Divisions).
“Also, agencies include the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE) and the Nigerian Army, among others,” he said.

Mr Mohammed said that during the patrol, officers were strategically deployed at identified flashpoints notorious for one-way driving and related violations.
Mr Mohammed said that the enforcement team intercepted the culprit, Koko Moses, driver of a Volkswagen bus with registration number MUS 89 YG, while driving against the flow of traffic.

“Further checks revealed that the offender was also driving without a valid driver’s licence, compounding the gravity of his offences and posing a serious threat to public safety.

“The offender was promptly charged in court by CSP Ayegbede John, divisional police officer (DPO), Warewa Police Station. Upon arraignment, the court found him guilty and sentenced him to two months’ imprisonment without the option of a fine.

Prison

“This is sending what authorities described as a clear and uncompromising message that impunity on the nation’s highways would no longer be tolerated,” he said.

Mr Mohammed, however, stated that the intervention patrol recorded an immediate reduction in incidents of one-way driving along the corridor, demonstrating the effectiveness of coordinated enforcement and sustained visibility.

Mr Mohammed lauded the joint team for its effective coordination and leadership in ensuring the operation’s success. He reiterated that the FRSC would continue to maintain zero tolerance for traffic violations that endanger lives and assured the motoring public of sustained enforcement operations along critical corridors nationwide.

Mr Mohammed also admonished motorists to obey traffic rules, cooperate with traffic management directives during construction works, and prioritise safety at all times.