The Presidency has dismissed former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Ab...
The Presidency has dismissed former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar’s, pledge to “open the borders” if elected in 2027, saying Nigeria’s land borders are already open.
The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, stated this in a statement issued on Friday titled, “Atiku and the Borders: Nigerians Deserve Facts, Not Campaign Slogans.”
Dare said the Federal Government had announced the reopening of most of the country’s land borders on March 14, 2024, and had not reversed the decision.
He also noted that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu opened the Kamba border in Kebbi State on February 14, 2026, which, according to him, had resulted in economic and diplomatic gains.
“It is therefore difficult to understand which borders the former Vice President intends to ‘open’ when the borders are already open,” Dare said.
He, however, said if Atiku’s proposal meant relaxing existing border controls, Nigerians deserved to know which controls he intended to remove, why he considered their removal necessary and what safeguards would be put in place against terrorism, arms trafficking, smuggling, human trafficking and other forms of transnational organised crime.
The presidential aide stressed that an open border should not be confused with an uncontrolled border.
According to him, modern border management is designed to facilitate legitimate movement, trade and economic interaction while preventing criminals and terrorist organisations from exploiting the same channels.
Dare said effective border governance required a combination of immigration control, customs administration, intelligence-sharing, surveillance, technology and coordinated security operations.
He said the issue was particularly important for Nigeria because of developments across the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin.
The Presidency noted that Nigeria shares borders with Niger, Chad and Cameroon, adding that terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organised crime remained security challenges across the region.
Dare cited the Global Terrorism Index 2026 as indicating that approximately 41 per cent of terrorist attacks occur within 50 kilometres of an international border, while about 64 per cent occur within 100 kilometres.
He said border areas were particularly vulnerable where difficult terrain, limited state presence and weak coordination created opportunities for terrorist organisations to operate.
According to him, the security implications for Nigeria were clear as insurgencies increasingly developed into networked and transnational terrorist threats.
“Terrorists and criminal networks exploit sovereign boundaries precisely because security forces cannot simply pursue them across international borders without appropriate cooperation and legal frameworks,” he said.
Dare also defended the Federal Government’s security operations along the Northeast and Northwest corridors, saying the coordinated deployment of the Armed Forces and other security institutions should not be interpreted as evidence that Nigeria’s borders were closed.
“It reflects responsible border security,” he said.
The presidential aide said Atiku, having previously served as Vice President, should understand the distinction between an open border and an uncontrolled border.
While acknowledging that political contestation was legitimate in a democracy, Dare said statements concerning national security and the economy should be based on facts, institutional understanding and credible alternative policies.
He challenged Atiku to provide a detailed explanation of how his proposed administration would improve border surveillance, strengthen intelligence-sharing with neighbouring countries, modernise customs and immigration operations, deploy technology, protect border communities and deepen regional cooperation against terrorism and organised crime.
Dare said the Tinubu administration remained open to scrutiny and should be assessed based on measurable outcomes in security, economic recovery, border management and citizens’ welfare.
He, however, insisted that such scrutiny must be grounded in facts.
According to him, Nigeria’s borders should remain open to legitimate commerce and movement while being secured against terrorists and criminals through technology, intelligence and integration with the country’s broader national security and economic strategy.
“That is the policy conversation Nigerians deserve,” Dare said.
The presidential aide further questioned what he described as Atiku’s apparent focus on reversing or renaming policies and initiatives of the Tinubu administration.
He asked what new and credible contribution the former Vice President intended to make to Nigeria’s development that was not already contained in the reform trajectory of the present administration.
“Rather than presenting Nigerians with a coherent alternative, Atiku appears increasingly preoccupied with promising to reverse, reopen, or rename initiatives already being implemented,” Dare said.
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