President Bola Tinubu has overridden the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, by moving the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau to the Presidency.
Although it has yet to be stated which office within the Presidency the bureau will now report to, Saturday PUNCH has exclusively gathered that the President has approved its relocation from the Ministry of Aviation to the Presidency.
The presidential approval effectively ends months of disagreements over where the bureau should be domiciled for optimal performance.
While stakeholders and lawmakers had argued that the bureau should be moved out of the aviation ministry to ensure operational independence, Keyamo had insisted that it should remain under the ministry.
Saturday PUNCH on Friday obtained a document conveying the presidential approval for the relocation of the bureau.
Tinubu, in the document, agreed that the NSIB would perform its duties more effectively while reporting directly to the Presidency.
In a letter dated November 3, 2025, also obtained by our correspondent, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination and Head of the Central Results Delivery Coordination Unit, Hadiza Usman, had earlier advised Tinubu to move the bureau out of the aviation ministry, noting that the move aligns with global best practices.
The presidential aide cited accident investigation bodies such as the National Transportation Safety Board in the United States, which reports directly to the highest level of government.
The letter partly read, “Mr President is invited to note that the Bureau’s effectiveness is currently limited by its placement under the Ministry of Aviation as outlined in Section 66, Page A1136 of the Establishment Act. This structure hampers the NSIB’s ability to fully execute its mandate due to the limitation of placing it under the supervision of the Ministry of Aviation when it has oversight not only over air safety accident investigations but also marine, rail and tracked vehicle accidents in Nigeria.
“This is also at odds with global best practice, where leading accident investigation bodies, such as the National Transportation Safety Board in the United States, operate as autonomous agencies directly reporting to the highest level of government. This structure ensures independence, credibility and efficiency in accident investigation processes.
“The proposed repositioning of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau to report to the Presidency will allow the necessary enforcement of safety regulations across all transportation sectors and remove it from the current limited sectoral ministerial oversight. It will improve transparency, accountability and public trust in investigative findings. This restructuring supports Your Excellency’s Renewed Hope Agenda of improved governance for effective service delivery.
“In light of the above considerations, Mr President is therefore invited to consider that the NSIB be repositioned as an agency reporting to the Presidency through the Office of the National Security Adviser. This strategic transition will rectify the current limitation of placing it under the supervision of the Ministry of Aviation when it has oversight not only over air safety accident investigations but also marine, rail and tracked vehicle accidents in Nigeria.”
Responding, Tinubu, through his Private Secretary, Damilola Aderemi, in another letter dated March 5, 2026, conveyed the President’s approval of Usman’s request, signalling the end of the bureau’s operations under the Ministry of Aviation.
Last year, The PUNCH reported indications that the Federal Government, with the backing of the National Assembly, might strip the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau of its subordination to the aviation ministry.
Although the Ministry of Aviation wanted the accident investigation agency to remain under it, sources in the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy said stakeholders in the transport sector favoured moving the agency to the Presidency, under the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
The NSIB, which is responsible for investigating accidents on land, water and in the air, has long sought greater funding and operational independence to enhance its service delivery.
In June 2025, the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development opposed plans by the National Assembly to relocate the agency from the ministry to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
The ministry made its position known during a public hearing organised by the joint committee on Special Duties and Aviation in Abuja.
Representing the ministry, the then Permanent Secretary, Abubakar Kana, urged lawmakers to retain the bureau under the aviation ministry while strengthening its operational framework to guarantee functional independence.
“I recommend that the National Assembly and its relevant stakeholders should please retain the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau within the Federal Ministry of Aviation,” Kana told the committee.
