Presidency takes direct control of Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau

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By Dickson Omobola

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Eight months after the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development made a case for the retention of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, NSIB, under the Ministry, President Bola Tinubu has approved NSIB’s repositioning to report directly to the Presidency.

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NSIB, formerly the Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB, is responsible for investigating road, rail and marine accidents.

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Before now, the agency, whose Director General is Capt. Alex Badeh Jr., reported to the President through the Aviation Minister.

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In July 2025, the ministry’s former Permanent Secretary, Dr Ibrahim Kana, at a one-day public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Joint Committees on Aviation and Special Duties at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja, warned that transferring NSIB’s oversight to the presidency could lead to “politicisation, diminished accountability, and disrupted policy coherence.”

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However, aviation experts who spoke to Vanguard at the time faulted Kana’s argument, saying that because NSIB’s activities cut across many ministries, it would be better controlled by the Presidency.

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For instance, President of ASRTI, Air Commodore Ademola Onitiju, retd, said aviation itself was complex, and adding NSIB’s burden could impede its effectiveness.

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Onitiju said: “NSIB is better supervised under the Presidency because its activities transcend many ministries. Because of such inter-ministerial involvement, NSIB will be easier to coordinate from the Presidency. We (ASRTI) emphasise its independence because its tasks should not be biased in any form.”

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In a presidential approval conveyed through a State House correspondence dated March 5, 2026, and transmitted to the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development on March 11 for immediate implementation, the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation has been directed to amend the NSIB Establishment Act 2022 and forward the proposed changes to the National Assembly.

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