I Have Read That They Have Written An Open Letter Opposed To US Military Presence In Nigeria — Sani

Former Kaduna Central lawmaker Shehu Sani has expressed support for international military cooperation, including potential United States involvement, to address persistent insecurity in Nigeria.

Sani made the remarks during an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, while reacting to concerns raised by some groups over possible U.S. military presence in the country.

He began by referencing his personal connection to the crisis: “Well, first of all, I must remind the viewers that I come from a state that has suffered under the attacks of bandits and terrorists in the last one and a half decades.”

He continued, “So speaking, I believe that I’m not going to simply talk based on what I read on newspapers but or what somebody says or simply a perspective. I am going to talk as someone who comes from the state that is at the center of this violence, this conflict, these terror attacks. That’s one.”

Sani noted that some associates had opposed foreign military involvement: “Secondly, I have read some of my friends, some of my comrades, that they have written an open letter opposed to U.S. military presence in Nigeria. And on the ground that our sovereignty is violated and there are other motives and intents with this presence of U.S. military.”

He stressed the scale and duration of violence in the country: “To me, we have suffered enough as a people and as a country in the sense that this is almost dragging up to two decades when terrorists have started their violence and bloodshed in our own part of the country and have killed hundreds of thousands of people.”

Listing armed groups operating in various regions, he said, “It started from the northeast with Boko Haram. Then you have ISWAP, then you have Ansaru, then you have Darus Islam. And then it comes to the northwest. You have bandits. Then you have Mamudawa, Lakurawa, and all this nonsense of terrorists killing our people.”

On the question of foreign support, Sani stated, “Now, we cannot say as a nation that we have to fold our arms or close our doors against support from other nations. No military in the whole world today can operate without the support of militaries or army of other nations.”

Drawing international comparisons, he added, “The United States has moved its own aircraft carrier to the Gulf today, but it is banking on support from its Gulf allies, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and other nations around that region for it to achieve its objective. Russia is in Ukraine. It is working in tandem with Ukraine, with North Korea, and Iran.”

He concluded, “Nigeria, we need the presence of military, U.S. military, to help in intergenerate, to partner with our army, for us to be able to crush and annihilate these bandits and terrorists…. Discover More News