24th November, 2025
The Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate and former Governor of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has accused politicians of orchestrating the recent surge in violent attacks across Nigeria to destabilise President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme, the lawmaker representing Abia North Senatorial District alleged that the escalating insecurity, including mass abductions and school closures, follows a familiar pattern that typically precedes national elections.
Senator Kalu drew parallels to the security challenges faced during former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, suggesting that similar forces are at work to undermine the current government ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“What we are seeing is always routine, something that goes with election. And when you have election, people will try to pressurise government in power for all kinds of things to start happening,” the former Abia governor stated.
The senator claimed that both local politicians and members of the international community are collaborating to recruit mercenaries and sponsor terrorist activities aimed at creating chaos in the country.
“The terrorists and the bandits are orchestrated by some members of the international community and local people who really want to destabilise government. These people are actually mercenaries brought by politicians. These people are people bought by individuals,” Kalu alleged.
He further noted that discussions about Nigeria’s insecurity intensified after United States President Donald Trump commented on killings in Nigeria, which he believes is part of the broader political strategy targeting 2027.
“We have been quiet until President Trump talks about people being killed in Nigeria. And you can see people talk about 2027 election, this and that. These people are people centred to destabilise a president that is ready to fight for our economy, that is ready to revamp the economy,” the Senate Chief Whip said.
Despite these allegations, Senator Kalu expressed confidence in President Tinubu’s capacity to handle the security crisis, noting that the president cancelled all Sunday engagements to focus exclusively on addressing the nation’s security challenges.
“President Tinubu is equal to the task. For the first time, you see the president cancelling all his engagements. Today is Sunday, and he faced security challenges,” he added.
The senator, however, declined to name specific individuals allegedly sponsoring the violence, stating that intelligence agencies are already aware of the sponsors.