Former Abia State Governor and Chairman of the Senate Committee on South East Development Commission (SEDC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will face no real opposition in the 2027 presidential election, describing the contest as \u201cTinubu versus Tinubu.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking to members of the Senate Press Corps at the National Assembly foyer on Tuesday, the Abia North Senator said the All Progressives Congress (APC) remains firmly rooted across the country and enjoys the overwhelming support of Nigerians, insisting that the President\u2019s policies are gradually reshaping the economy and national security.<\/p>\n
\u201cHas he gotten anyone contesting against him? The election is Tinubu vs Tinubu just like Soludo vs Soludo. The President has no options,\u201d Kalu said. \u201cOur party is fully on ground and fully with the people. Nobody can say we don\u2019t have the people on ground. We will continue to do what we can to help the Nigerian masses progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kalu, who also served as Chief Whip of the 9th Senate, said the National Assembly under Senator Godswill Akpabio\u2019s leadership remains committed to supporting Tinubu\u2019s economic recovery plans through pro-people legislation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever is the problem, the Senate is more interested in making laws that will help President Ahmed Tinubu overcome the economic problems that our people are going through. We are focusing on redeeming Nigerian people to see that they eat three times a day,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Kalu on U.S., Trump, and Killings in Nigeria: \u201cTrump Told the Truth\u201d<\/p>\n
Reacting to comments credited to former U.S. President Donald Trump on the spate of killings in Nigeria and America\u2019s readiness to act, Kalu said Trump \u201ctold the truth,\u201d stressing that the attacks across the country have claimed both Christian and Muslim lives and should be condemned without bias.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it\u2019s a lie, then the answer is that it\u2019s not a lie because he said the truth. Nigerians are being killed whether they are Christians or Muslims.<\/p>\n
There are jihadists who just want to destroy Nigeria. We should blacklist them without pity so that they will be smoked out,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Kalu revealed that he had personally discussed Nigeria\u2019s security situation with two former U.S. Presidents one Republican and one Democrat and six sitting U.S. Senators, who, according to him, expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in tackling terrorism.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore President Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can see that the Nigerian Air Force is already acting, possibly using information shared by the U.S. to bomb terrorist hideouts. That\u2019s how it should be.\u201d<\/p>\n
While aligning himself as \u201cpro-America,\u201d Kalu also noted that part of the global instability today stemmed from the U.S. invasion and elimination of Libya\u2019s Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq\u2019s Saddam Hussein, which, he argued, led to the proliferation of arms across Africa.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you killed Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein, 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,\u201d Kalu explained.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He stressed that contrary to speculation, the U.S. was not targeting President Tinubu\u2019s administration, but rather the jihadist elements responsible for insecurity in Nigeria.<\/p>\n
\u201cNigerians are clapping hands and political opponents are thinking that the U.S. is after Tinubu\u2019s government No! They are going after the jihadists,\u201d Kalu clarified.<\/p>\n
On Party Politics and Defections<\/p>\n
Commenting on speculation that Abia State Governor Alex Otti may defect from the Labour Party to the APC, Kalu said neither President Tinubu nor any APC leader had pressured anyone to join the ruling party.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s be honest, neither me nor other senators, Senate President or President Tinubu have ever forced anybody to join our party. I have met with my Governor; he is my brother and used to be my banker. Whether he joins or not is up to him,\u201d Kalu said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut as for me, I will work 100% for the APC, campaign in the state and ensure that we secure victory for President Tinubu and every candidate of the APC.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
On the likelihood of Anambra State Governor Charles Soludo joining the APC after his re-election, Kalu expressed confidence that the APGA governor would \u201ceventually come home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSoludo is a progressive like myself, President Tinubu, Senate President Akpabio, and the Governors of Imo, Ebonyi, and Enugu. He has no alternative than to come and join us it\u2019s confirmed,\u201d he asserted.<\/p>\n
On the Economy: \u201cMacro Economy Doing Well, But Micro Still Struggling\u201d<\/p>\n
Assessing the current state of the Nigerian economy, the senator acknowledged the hardship many citizens face but maintained that macroeconomic indicators are improving.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a businessman, I am feeling the pain too. The macro economy is doing well, but the micro economy is not. Foreign investors are coming in, and what is left is for this progress to trickle down to the masses so that people can eat daily and return to farming,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
Kalu said both the President and the Senate are working relentlessly to revive the economy and restore food security.<\/p>\n
\u201cPresident Tinubu has put his life into revamping the economy, and the Senate is also doing its best to ensure that Nigerians feel the progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Senate Stability<\/p>\n
Addressing reports of initial moves to impeach the Senate President, Senator Kalu dismissed the tension as a \u201cfamily misunderstanding,\u201d insisting that lawmakers remain united in supporting the leadership and the national agenda.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were attempts, but we didn\u2019t allow that to happen. We are one big family, and it\u2019s not going to happen,\u201d he assured.<\/p>\n
Senator Kalu\u2019s remarks underscored his unwavering loyalty to President Tinubu and the APC, his pro-American stance on counterterrorism, and his optimism that Nigeria\u2019s economic and security challenges are surmountable through collaboration between the executive, legislature, and international partners.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former Abia State Governor and Chairman of the Senate Committee on South East Development Commission (SEDC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will face no real opposition in the 2027 presidential election, describing the contest as \u201cTinubu versus Tinubu.\u201d Speaking to members of the Senate Press Corps at the National…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":921,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[135,119,129],"class_list":["post-920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-assembly","tag-kalu","tag-security","tag-trump"],"yoast_head":"\n