Minister says former VP’s 2027 border pledge misrepresents Nigeria’s trade, security policies
Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo
•ABUJA – The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has faulted former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s promise to reopen Nigeria’s land borders if elected president in 2027, saying the borders are not closed in the first place.
Tunji-Ojo said describing the country’s borders as closed was inaccurate, stressing that several land crossings had been reopened by successive administrations.
The minister, in a statement issued on Saturday, recalled that the previous administration reopened the Seme, Illela, Maigatari and Mfum borders on December 16, 2020, with Idiroko and Ikom reopened for goods and services on April 20, 2022.
He added that the current administration reopened the Kamba and Tsamiya borders in Kebbi State in February 2026, linking Nigeria with Niger Republic and Benin Republic respectively.
Tunji-Ojo also rejected Atiku’s reference to the borders with Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin as having remained shut because of the 2019 trade policy.
According to him, the prolonged closure of the Banki and Amchidé crossings on the Nigeria-Cameroon border was triggered by Boko Haram insurgency in 2014 and was therefore primarily a security measure.
He said the crossings were reopened in 2019, while Fotokol and Gambaru followed in 2021 after joint military and stabilisation efforts by Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad.
The minister said, “Folding this separate, security-driven history into one continuous 2019 shutdown misrepresents two distinct issues, trade regulation and counter-insurgency, as a single failure.”
Tunji-Ojo also acknowledged that some northern border crossings were not yet fully unrestricted, explaining that tighter controls remained necessary in areas affected by banditry or residual insurgent activities.
He said reopening such crossings without addressing prevailing security threats could expose traders and border communities to greater risks.
The minister maintained that modern border management was not a choice between total closure and unrestricted movement, but required a combination of security, proper documentation, customs compliance and controlled trade facilitation.
He urged Atiku to explain his proposed border policy and how it would differ from the current approach, rather than presenting trade regulation, security challenges and infrastructure issues as one problem.
“Political competition should not become a competition to rewrite recent history,” Tunji-Ojo said.