By Seun Ibiyemi
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has dismissed former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s plan to reopen Nigeria’s land borders if elected president in 2027, saying the country’s borders are already open.
Tunji-Ojo, who supervises the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), said it was inaccurate to describe Nigeria’s land borders as closed, noting that several major crossings had been reopened by successive administrations.
The Minister made the clarification in a statement on Saturday in response to comments by Atiku on his plans for Nigeria’s land borders if elected president.
According to Tunji-Ojo, the previous administration reopened Seme, Illela, Maigatari and Mfum on December 16, 2020, while Idiroko and Ikom were reopened for goods and services on April 20, 2022.
He added that Kamba and Tsamiya in Kebbi State were reopened under the current administration in February 2026, providing links to Niger Republic and Benin Republic respectively.
The Minister also disputed the former Vice President’s reference to the borders with Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin Republic as part of a prolonged closure resulting from the 2019 trade policy.
He explained that the closure of the Banki and Amchidé crossings on the Cameroon border was driven by security concerns arising from Boko Haram activities in 2014.
According to him, the crossings were reopened in 2019, while Fotokol and Gambaru followed in 2021 after joint military and stabilisation efforts involving Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad.
Tunji-Ojo said linking the security-driven closures to the 2019 trade policy amounted to a misrepresentation of two separate issues.
“Folding this separate, security driven history into one continuous 2019 shutdown misrepresents two distinct issues, trade regulation and counter insurgency, as a single failure,” he said.
The Minister acknowledged that not every northern border crossing was currently operating without restrictions, but said such measures were deliberate security decisions in areas still affected by banditry or residual insurgent activity.
He warned that reopening border crossings ahead of prevailing security conditions could expose traders and border communities to increased risks.
Tunji-Ojo argued that modern border management should not be viewed simply as a choice between complete closure and unrestricted movement.
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“Modern border management is not a choice between total closure and unrestricted movement; it requires security, documentation, customs compliance and controlled trade facilitation together,” he said.
The Minister urged political actors to avoid what he described as attempts to rewrite recent history for political purposes.
He challenged Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), to provide details of any new border policy he intends to introduce rather than portraying separate trade, security and infrastructure issues as one problem.
“If he has a new border proposal, he should set it out and explain how it differs from the current approach, rather than treating separate trade, security and infrastructure issues as one and the same,” Tunji-Ojo said.
