Chairman of the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission (SEDC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has supported comments made by former United States President Donald Trump on killings in Nigeria, describing them as truthful.
Speaking with journalists on Tuesday in Abuja, Kalu said Nigerians—both Christians and Muslims—have continued to suffer from widespread insecurity and terrorist attacks across the country.
He stated, “If it’s a lie, then the answer is that it’s not a lie because he said the truth. Nigerians are being killed, whether they are Christians or Muslims. There are jihadists who just want to destroy Nigeria. We should blacklist them without pity.”
Kalu, who is also the former governor of Abia State, disclosed that he had discussed Nigeria’s security challenges with two former U.S. Presidents and six sitting Senators in Washington, who expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in tackling terrorism.
He added that recent military airstrikes may have been supported by intelligence shared by the United States, saying, “Before President Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located.”
Kalu attributed the spread of arms and growing insecurity across Africa to the collapse of the regimes of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, noting that their deaths destabilized regional borders.
“When Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein were killed, it became a problem because those people were maintaining their borders. After their deaths, light and heavy arms spilled all over the world, and we are suffering from it today,” he said.
The lawmaker dismissed claims that the U.S. was targeting President Bola Tinubu’s government, insisting that America’s concern was directed at jihadist groups destabilizing the country.
“Nigerians are clapping hands and political opponents are thinking the U.S. is after Tinubu’s government. No, they are going after the jihadists,” Kalu stated.
On the 2027 general elections, the senator declared that President Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) remained unstoppable, describing the poll as a one-sided contest.
“Has he gotten anyone contesting against him? The election is Tinubu versus Tinubu. Our party is fully on ground and with the people,” Kalu said.
He assured that the Senate, under the leadership of Senator Godswill Akpabio, would continue to support President Tinubu’s economic recovery agenda through legislation aimed at improving citizens’ welfare.
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“Whatever the problem, the Senate is more interested in making laws that will help President Tinubu overcome the economic problems our people are going through. We are focusing on ensuring Nigerians can eat three times a day,” he said.
On rumours of possible defections to the APC, Kalu explained that no one was being pressured to join the ruling party, saying, “Neither I nor other senators nor the President have ever forced anybody to join our party.”
He maintained that the nation’s macroeconomic indices were improving, though the impact had yet to reach ordinary Nigerians.
“The macro economy is doing well, but the micro economy is not. Foreign investors are coming in, but we need the progress to trickle down so people can eat daily,” he said.
Kalu also dismissed reports of a plot to impeach the Senate President, describing the issue as a minor internal misunderstanding.
“There were attempts, but we didn’t allow that to happen. We are one big family, and it’s not going to happen,” he added.