…the ADC stressed that the protection of lives and the defeat of terrorism must remain paramount national objectives.
ABUJA, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) airstrikes in Sokoto State as a reflection of what it called President Bola Tinubu’s alleged failure to effectively tackle Nigeria’s security challenges.
In a statement issued yesterday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party questioned Nigeria’s role in the operation, arguing that the country should not have been reduced to acting merely as an intelligence source in a mission it ought to have led.
While acknowledging the grave security challenges confronting the nation, the ADC stressed that the protection of lives and the defeat of terrorism must remain paramount national objectives.
The party said it supports all lawful efforts aimed at combating insecurity but remains firmly opposed to the physical presence and operations of foreign military forces on Nigerian territory.
“We must not allow our current desperation to undermine the sovereignty of our country under any guise,” the statement said.
According to the ADC, the AFRICOM airstrikes on alleged terrorist locations in Sokoto State on Thursday, December 25, 2025, should only be viewed as an emergency step and must not replace a Nigeria-led response to domestic security threats.
It added that such an unusual development could only be explained by what it termed the historic incompetence of the Tinubu administration in addressing the country’s security problems.
“This is the outcome when governance is reduced to revenue collection, while critical responsibilities such as national security and diplomacy are treated as afterthoughts,” the party stated.
The ADC also expressed concern over how Nigerians were informed of the operation, noting that while the President readily addresses the nation on political matters, information about a foreign military strike on Nigerian soil first emerged through a social media post by the U.S. President.
It described the situation as alarming, adding that the only official Nigerian response came from a spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which, it said, underscored a disturbing lack of appreciation by the President of the gravity and historic implications of the incident.
The party called on the Federal Government to clearly explain Nigeria’s role in the operation, including the extent of control exercised by Nigerian security agencies, the terms of engagement with the United States, and the nature of the collaboration.
“If Nigeria had sufficient intelligence to guide the United States in carrying out this strike, why was it unable to lead the mission itself, despite the trillions of naira spent on security over the years?” the ADC asked.
The party further queried what specialised skills or technology Nigeria lacked that necessitated foreign intervention, the immediate results of the strike, and whether similar operations should be expected in the future.
Warning against what it described as a dangerous slide from strategic cooperation to outright surrender, the ADC said such an approach could prove counterproductive to national security and harmful to Nigeria’s long-term sovereign interests.
“What we are witnessing,” the statement concluded, “is a President who has outsourced his most critical constitutional responsibility, effectively relinquishing the driver’s seat in a vehicle he is constitutionally mandated to control.”
