Orji Kalu
Orji Kalu, senator representing Abia north, has backed US President Donald Trump’s rhetoric on the spate of killings in Nigeria.
On October 31, Trump tagged Nigeria a “country of particular concern” and accused the government of turning a blind eye to attacks on Christians.
Days later, Trump instructed the US department of war to prepare for “possible action” to wipe out Islamic terrorists in Nigeria.
Reacting to Trump’s remarks, Kalu said the US leader “told the truth”, but added that the attacks across the country have claimed both Christian and Muslim lives and should be condemned without bias.
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“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,” Kalu said.
“There are jihadists who just want to destroy Nigeria. We should blacklist them without pity so that they will be smoked out.”
Kalu added that he had discussed Nigeria’s security situation with two former US presidents — one Republican and one Democrat — and six sitting US senators who he said expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in tackling terrorism.
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“Before President Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located,” he said.
“You can see that the Nigerian Air Force is already acting, possibly using information shared by the US to bomb terrorist hideouts. That’s how it should be.”
Describing himself as “pro-America”, the former Abia governor said part of the global instability being experienced today stemmed from the US invasion and elimination of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq’s Saddam Hussein — events which, he argued, led to the proliferation of arms across Africa.
“When you killed Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein, it became a problem because those people were maintaining their borders,” Kalu said.
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“After their deaths, light and heavy arms spilled all over the world and we are suffering from it today.”
He said contrary to speculation, the US is not targeting the President Bola Tinubu administration, but rather the jihadist elements responsible for insecurity in Nigeria.
“Nigerians are clapping and political opponents are thinking that the US is after Tinubu’s government. No! They are going after the jihadists,” he added.
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