The African Democratic Congress coalition party has joined the United States in criticizing President Bola Tinubu’s administration, arguing that his indifferent attitude toward insecurity has made the situation worse, with a terror cell supported by Al-Qaeda reaching Kwara.
“Under this administration, terror and violence have spread from the far east and west of the north to the central region.” Another terror group, JNIM, an Al-Qaeda affiliate that had been active in the Sahel region, announced a successful attack in Kwara State, which serves as a gateway to the southern part of the country, on October 31, 2025, the day President Trump expressed concern about Nigeria, according to a statement from ADC. “There is an existential crisis that threatens all Nigerians; it is not about any ethnic or religious group being targeted to kill.”
According to the coalition, since Mr. Tinubu took office in 2023, thousands of Nigerians have perished as a result of violence and conflict.
Aso Rock was rocked by President Donald Trump’s Friday warning to use the U.S. military to invade Nigeria, as Mr. Tinubu, cabinet members, and supporters hurried to minimize the country’s long-running insecurity crisis as not necessarily directed at Christians.
FCT minister Nyesom Wike and Femi Fani-Kayode, two of the president’s aides, have joined with their leader in criticizing Mr. Trump for interfering in issues they claimed were outside of his purview.
Bolaji Abdullahi, the spokesperson for the ADC, claimed on Monday that not only was Mr. Tinubu’s administration full of justifications, but it also managed to increase the number of Nigerians killed by violence and insurgents to 15,000 in just over two years since taking office, noting that entire communities and “worshippers have been slaughtered in religious spaces.”
The new coalition said that since this administration took office in 2023, “available reports indicate that nearly 15,000 lives have been lost to sundry violent activities,” adding that the “deaths occurred across regions and religions.”
The coalition denounced Mr. Tinubu’s incompetence and refusal to accept that the crisis had escalated under his watch, noting his litany of justifications, even while ADC acknowledged that Mr. Tinubu inherited a country devastated by insurgency and violence.
According to the ADC, “President Tinubu did not start the problem of insecurity in Nigeria.” “President Tinubu’s refusal to acknowledge that the crisis has gotten worse under his watch is the problem.”
According to the coalition, JNIM (Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin) launched its first offensive against Nigerian soldiers and territory as a result of Mr. Tinubu’s mishandling of the country’s existential issue. The rebel group was well-known for its activities in Burkina Faso and Mali.
On Friday, the same day that Mr. Trump accused Mr. Tinubu’s administration of permitting Islamic terrorists to kill Christians in specific attacks, JNIM, a group supported by Al-Qaeda, boasted of unleashing devastation that killed a Nigerian soldier.
Mr. Tinubu refuted the accusation, claiming that his administration was making every effort to identify the perpetrators and that Nigerians of all races and religions were victims of insecurity. But the president’s remarks have so far done little to inspire confidence, as the majority of Nigerians said
An “independent audit of operations, leadership, and strategy” was suggested as part of a revamp of the national security apparatus by ADC.
The ADC asked the US government to help Nigeria develop the capacity to address its own issues, warning that the possible mobilization of US troops to invade the country would undermine the country’s democracy.
