THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is seeking a 212.5 per cent increase in its proposed 2025 budget from the Federal Government.

The commission is requesting  N126 billion instead of the N40 billion the government budgeted for it in the proposed budget.

The INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, stated this while defending the 2024 budget implementation before the National Assembly on Friday, January 10.

He said elections in the country were a huge burden requiring adequate funding.

“Our proposal for the 2025 budget, the provision requires the sum of over N126 billion.  We have the document that has provided details line by line on how we intended to spend the N126 billion.

“We would like the support of the National to enable us to achieve our responsibilities in the first line charge and most of these responsibilities are constitutional,” he said.

He said the N40 billion allocated for the commission in the 2025 budget would cover only one-third of projected expenses which he said amounted to over N126 billion.

“Aside the off-cycle elections for 21 constituencies to be filled through bye-elections and the Anambra governorship election this year, personnel cost alone on account of the new minimum wage will eat up the N40 billion budgetary envelope,” Yakubu said.

He hinted that the inadequacy of the budget made the electoral body to get intervention funds of N10.5 billion for the Edo and Ondo elections in 2024 and another N500 million for bye-elections in affected constituencies in 2024.

Members of the committee were said to have assured the electoral body that the proposed sum would be appropriated in the 2025 fiscal year.

President Bola Tinubu had submitted a budget size of  N47.90 trillion to the National Assembly for review and approval in December 2024, The ICIR reported.

In the budget, he proposed revenue of N34.82 trillion, crude oil production assumption at 2.06 million barrels per day (mbpd), inflation at 15 per cent and naira-dollar exchange rate at N1,500.

The government also budgeted a N13.08 trillion deficit or 3.89 per cent of Nigerian gross domestic product (GDP), and N15.81 trillion in debt servicing.