Interior Minister Faults Atiku’s Claim on Reopening Nigeria’s Land Borders

Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has dismissed claims that Nigeria’s land borders are currently closed, saying former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to reopen them if elected president in 2027 misrepresents the country’s current border situation.
In a statement issued on Saturday, August 29, 2026, Tunji-Ojo said Nigerian borders “are not closed and so cannot be reopened.”
The minister, who supervises the Nigeria Immigration Service responsible for border and migration management, said several land borders have been reopened since the closure policy introduced by the previous administration.
According to him, Seme, Illela, Maigatari and Mfum border posts were reopened on December 16, 2020, while Idiroko and Ikom were reopened for goods and services on April 20, 2022.
He added that Kamba and Tsamiya border crossings in Kebbi State were reopened in February 2026 under the current administration, linking Nigeria with Niger Republic and Benin Republic respectively.
Tunji-Ojo also addressed Atiku’s reference to Nigeria’s borders with Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin Republic, stressing that the history of some border closures was linked to security concerns rather than the 2019 trade restrictions.
He said the Banki and Amchidé crossings along the Cameroon border were shut in 2014 due to Boko Haram attacks and were later reopened in 2019, while Fotokol and Gambaru followed in 2021 after joint military and stabilisation efforts involving Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad.
“Folding this separate, security-driven history into one continuous 2019 shutdown misrepresents two distinct issues, trade regulation and counter-insurgency, as a single failure,” the minister said.
Tunji-Ojo acknowledged that some northern border crossings remain under tighter restrictions due to banditry and residual insurgent activities.
He said such measures were deliberate security decisions aimed at protecting traders and border communities, noting that reopening crossings without adequate security could expose residents to greater risks.
The minister maintained that modern border management required a balance between security, documentation, customs compliance and trade facilitation.
“Political competition should not become a competition to rewrite recent history,” Tunji-Ojo said, urging Atiku to clearly outline any new border policy proposals and explain how they differ from the current approach.