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Border Closure: Osinbajo Begs Nigerians for More Patience
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Friday appealed to Nigerians to bear with the government over the closure of Nigeria’s borders with neighbouring countries.
Mr Osinbajo made the appeal while speaking at the ongoing town hall meeting which coincides with the National Festival of Arts and Culture, NAFEST in Edo State, Punch newspaper reported.
He said the border closure is in the interest of the country and local producers especially farmers.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how the federal government in August shut down its borders with its immediate neighbours, mainly Benin and Niger.
The closure has led to reduced smuggling activities as well as increased revenue for the Nigeria Customs Service. It has, however, led to an increase in the prices of some food items like rice and poultry, most of which were hitherto imported through the neighbouring countries.
Stating the reason for the continuous closure of Nigeria’s border, Mr Osinbajo said: “We want our neighbouring countries to begin to take us very very serious.”
Responding to a question by the vice president of Edo market women, Christiana Omokaro, who bemoaned the high cost of rice and other foodstuffs in the market, Mr Osinbajo said one of the reasons for the border closure was to get the attention of neighbouring countries to take border control more seriously.
“Part of the reasons for shutting the border is the smuggling that has been going on. If we continue to allow the Chinese and others to continue to bring in all those things, we will kill farming completely and most of our people will not be employed,” he said.
He urged people to endure the temporary effects of the border closure to reap attendant benefits.
He also encouraged Nigerians to support local production and farmers by bearing with the border closure and by purchasing local commodities in market.
“If we allow our own people grow these things, our people will prosper. The only way our people can prosper is if we let them use the opportunity that they have such as farming, fishing and others,” he said.
Mr Osinbajo said the government was committed to ending the hardship from the border closure.
“We are going to make sure that commodities are cheaper.
“We must bear in mind that the reason today some commodities are more expensive is because we stopped smuggling. We have to encourage our local farmers so that our local farmers can prosper,” he said.
Recalcitrant Smugglers
Despite the closure of the borders, smugglers have still tried to smuggle goods into the country.
The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) revealed on Thursday how it intercepted 1,879 bags of foreign rice smuggled into the country through petrol tankers in Niger, Kogi and Kwara states, in October.
The Customs Area Controller in-charge of Kogi and Niger states, Yusuf Abba-Kassim, told journalists in Minna that the situation was worrisome.
He said the Customs would ensure all such illegal actions are stopped.
“We are determined to beat all their concealment patterns with our superior intelligence network,” he said.
Premium Times
United States Representative Riley Moors has said further military strikes against Islamic State-linked militants in Nigeria could follow recent operations ordered by President Donald Trump, describing the actions as aimed at improving security and protecting Christian communities facing violence.
Moore made the remarks during a televised interview in which he addressed U.S. military strikes carried out on Christmas Day against militant targets in North-west Nigeria.
The strikes were conducted in coordination with the Nigerian government, according to U.S. and Nigerian officials.
“President Trump is not trying to bring war to Nigeria, he’s bringing peace and security to Nigeria and to the thousands of Christians who face horrific violence and death,” Moore said.
He said the Christmas Day strikes against Islamic State affiliates had provided hope to Christians in Nigeria, particularly in areas affected by repeated attacks during past festive periods.
According to U.S. authorities, the strikes targeted camps used by Islamic State-linked groups operating in parts of north-west Nigeria.
Nigerian officials confirmed that the operation was carried out with intelligence support from Nigerian security agencies as part of ongoing counter-terrorism cooperation between both countries.
The United States Africa Command said the operation was intended to degrade the operational capacity of extremist groups responsible for attacks on civilians and security forces.
Nigerian authorities have described the targeted groups as a threat to national security, noting their involvement in killings, kidnappings and raids on rural communities.
Moore said the strikes marked a shift from previous years in which attacks were carried out against civilians during the Christmas period. He said the U.S. administration was focused on preventing further violence by targeting militant groups before they could launch attacks.
U.S. officials have said the military action was carried out with the consent of the Nigerian government and formed part of broader security cooperation between the two countries. Nigeria has received intelligence, training and logistical support from international partners as it seeks to contain militant activity.
Moore had previously called for stronger international attention to attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria and has urged continued U.S. engagement in addressing extremist violence. He said further action would depend on developments on the ground and continued coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Nigerian officials have maintained that counter-terrorism operations are directed at armed groups threatening civilians, regardless of religion, and have reiterated their commitment to restoring security across affected regions.
World-renowned boxer Anthony Joshua on Monday survived a ghastly road accident in Makun, Ogun State.
Eyewitnesses report that the incident occurred along a busy highway of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
The vehicle carrying Joshua, a Lexus Jeep with the number plate, KRD 850 HN, reportedly collided with a stationary truck under circumstances that are still being investigated.
Joshua reportedly sustained minor injuries, while two persons were said to have died on the spot.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has cautioned that any attempt to hurriedly re‑gazette Nigeria’s new tax laws could undermine parliamentary oversight and set a dangerous constitutional precedent.
Atiku’s warning follows public scrutiny over reports that the Tax Reform Acts signed by President Bola Tinubu differ from the versions passed by the National Assembly. Lawmakers, including Abdussamad Dasuki, raised concerns that the alterations could pose serious legal and constitutional risks, noting that they were not backed by any constitutional framework.
In a statement on X, Atiku said the directive to re-gazette the Acts effectively confirms “that the gazetted version of the Tinubu Tax Act does not reflect what was duly passed by the National Assembly,” calling it “a grave constitutional issue.”
He emphasized that under Section 58 of the 1999 Constitution, a bill only becomes law after passage by both chambers, presidential assent, and gazetting.
“Gazetting is merely an administrative act of publication. It does not create, amend, or validate a law,” Atiku said, adding that any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification without legislative approval constitutes forgery rather than a clerical error.
Atiku further warned that rushing a re-gazetting while legislative investigations are ongoing “undermines parliamentary oversight and sets a dangerous precedent,” stressing that the only lawful approach is “fresh legislative consideration, re-passage by both chambers, fresh presidential assent, and proper gazetting.”
The former vice president clarified that his position is not opposition to tax reform but a defence of constitutional order.
“This is a defence of the integrity of the legislative process and a rejection of any attempt to normalise constitutional breaches through procedural shortcuts,” he said.
The Federal government has denied wrongdoing, insisting the laws will take effect as scheduled on January 1, 2026, while the National Assembly has directed the issuance of Certified True Copies of the Acts to ensure clarity and accuracy.
