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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has said the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) airstrikes in Sokoto State highlights President Bola Tinubu’s alleged incompetence.
The ADC, in a statement by its interim National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, yesterday, queried Nigeria’s role in the operation. It stated that the country should not be “mere informants” in an operation it should be leading.
The opposition party, while stating that it appreciates the enormous security challenges in the country, noted that the protection of lives and defeat of terrorism in the country must remain a national priority.
The party stated that though it supports all lawful measures geared towards combating insecurity, it remains opposed ‘ to the physical operation of foreign military forces on Nigerian soil.
“We must not allow our desperation today to compromise the sovereignty of our country in whatever form or guise.
It is in this context that we accept the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) airstrikes on ‘terrorist locations’ in Sokoto State on Thursday, December 25, 2025, only as a desperate measure that must not be allowed to substitute for a Nigeria-led action against its domestic security challenges.
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“As an anomaly, the action can only be justified in the context of the historic incompetence of the current administration under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in dealing with the nation’s security challenges. This is what happens when a government behaves as though governance is all about revenue collection and all other issues, including national security and diplomacy, could be treated as an afterthought.”
The ADC, while noting that the manner Nigerians were informed of the operation is troubling, said when it is politics and propaganda, President Tinubu would address the country directly.
“Yet, when faced with an issue as sensitive, momentous, and consequential as a foreign military strike on Nigerian soil, the primary source of information was a social media post by the American President, while the only information coming from Nigeria was from a spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This reflects a frightening lack of awareness of the historic significance of this incident by the President of Nigeria.”
The party charged the government to explain the role of the country in the military operations, including the level of operational control exercised by Nigerian security, in the strike, as well as the terms of engagement in the “collaboration” with the US government on the operation.
“If Nigeria possessed the intelligence that it could pass on to the United States to guide this operation, why was the country unable to lead the mission, despite the trillions of naira spent over the years on security? What special skills or technology did this operation require that Nigeria does not possess? What are the immediate outcomes of the strike, and how many more such strikes should we expect?
“The ADC would like to warn that there is a difference between strategic collaboration and myopic surrender that is ultimately counter-productive to national security and inimical to the long-term sovereign interests of Nigeria. What we see is that President Tinubu has outsourced his most important constitutional responsibility, effectively taking a back seat in a vehicle he is constitutionally assigned to drive.”
