President Bola Tinubu has declared that his administration will show no mercy to terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and those who finance or support them, as he unveiled a renewed offensive against violent crime in the 2026 budget.
The President made the pledge on Friday while presenting the ₦58.18 trillion 2026 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly in Abuja. The budget, titled “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity,” places security at the heart of national development.
Tinubu earmarked ₦5.41 trillion for defence and internal security, the largest single allocation in the proposed budget and the third consecutive year security has topped sectoral spending under his administration. He said the funding reflects his government’s determination to restore peace and stability across the country.
“We will show no mercy. We will usher in a new era of criminal justice,” the President said, vowing to act decisively against terrorism, banditry, kidnapping for ransom and other violent crimes.
According to Tinubu, the security vote will be tied to accountability and clear results, with a focus on strengthening the operational capacity of the armed forces and other security agencies through modern equipment and improved intelligence.
He also announced a major reset of Nigeria’s national security architecture, including the introduction of a new counter-terrorism doctrine built on unified command, intelligence gathering, community stability and counter-insurgency operations.
Under the new framework, all armed groups or gun-wielding non-state actors operating outside state authority will be classified as terrorists. Bandits, militias, armed gangs, violent cults, forest-based armed groups and foreign-linked criminal networks will all be treated as legitimate targets of security operations.
Beyond security, Tinubu outlined key allocations in the 2026 budget, including ₦3.56 trillion for infrastructure, ₦3.52 trillion for education, and ₦2.48 trillion for health and social services. He stressed that the sectors are interconnected, noting that without security, investment cannot thrive, and without education, health and infrastructure, productivity and job creation will suffer.
The President said total revenue for 2026 is projected at ₦34.33 trillion, while expenditure stands at ₦58.18 trillion. Of this, ₦15.52 trillion is set aside for debt servicing, ₦15.2 trillion for recurrent non-debt spending and ₦26.08 trillion for capital projects. The budget deficit is estimated at ₦23.85 trillion, representing 4.28 per cent of GDP.
Tinubu also vowed to end the practice of running overlapping budgets, promising that from 2026 Nigeria would operate a single, disciplined budget cycle to improve planning, execution and accountability.
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Acknowledging the economic hardship many Nigerians have faced since the start of his reforms, the President insisted the measures were necessary for long-term stability and shared prosperity. He said the 2026 budget is designed to move the country from survival to growth while restoring confidence in the economy.
In their responses, Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas called for continued cooperation between the Executive and the Legislature, expressing confidence that the proposed budget would help stabilise the economy and lay the foundation for shared prosperity.
