Aliyu Muktar Betara

Muktar Aliyu Betara is a Nigerian accountant and lawmaker, first elected to the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2007 to represent the Biu/Bayo/Shani and Kwaya Kusar Federal Constituency of Borno State in the North-eastern region of Nigeria. He was the Chairman, House Committee on Appropriations in the 9th Assembly which held its first session on 11 June 2019. This marks his fourth tenure as a member of the House of Representatives.

Betara, who is an indigene of Zarawuyaku in Biu township, Borno State, was born on 22 November 1966 into a large family; he is the 20th of 21 children. His father was a civil servant heading several community councils while his mother was a devoted housewife.

Betara began his education at Biu Central Primary School in 1973 and obtained his First School Leaving Certificate in 1978. He proceeded to Biu Central Junior Day Secondary School, then to Government Technical Secondary School Benishek, Borno State, where his leadership skills saw him becoming head prefect and obtained his West Africa School Certificate in 1983.

He advanced his education at Ramat Polytechnic, Maiduguri, obtaining an Ordinary National Diploma (OND) in Business Administration in 1986. He worked as an Accountant with the Presidency’s Directorate for Food, Roads, and Rural Infrastructure (DFFRI) from 1986 to 1990. He returned to Ramat Polytechnic for his Higher National Diploma (HND) in Accounting and Business Administration, graduating in 1992.

Betara served his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) at Delta State Government House, Asaba. After completing his service year, he joined the defunct Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL) in 1993, rising to the role of Manager before retiring voluntarily in 2006 to enter politics.

Initially not intent on politics, Betara ran for the House of Representatives on the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) platform and was elected to represent Biu, Kwaya Kusar, Bayo, and Shani Federal Constituency in 2007. Since then, he has been re-elected three times, serving in the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth assemblies on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform.

Between 2007 and 2011, Betara chaired the Sub-committee on NDIC, Banking and Currency and was a member of the House Committee on Interior. He was subsequently appointed as Chairman of the Sub-committee on Customs, Immigration, and Prisons Pension Office (CIPPO).

At the seventh assembly (2011–2015), he was appointed Chairman of the House Committee on the Army, making key recommendations to bolster the army’s operations against insurgency in the Northern region. From 2015 to 2019, he served as Chairman of the House Committee on Defence.

Currently, Betara is the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, overseeing budgetary processes. Under his leadership, the committee successfully transitioned the budget cycle from June-to-June to January-to-December, ensuring better fiscal planning. The Appropriation Act, 2022, and Finance Act, 2021 were passed and enacted for three consecutive years.

He has championed bills such as the Defence Research and Development Bureau Bill (2018) and a repeal of export standard enforcement laws. A devout Muslim, Betara is married to Hauwa Betara with four children.