Controversial Tinubu Aide Bwala Says NGOs Are Funding, Fuelling Insecurity in Nigeria

By Abu Adamu
Controversial Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communications, Daniel Bwala, has alleged that some non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are helping to fuel Nigeria’s protracted security crisis.

Speaking on The Link Up Podcast organised by Echoo Room, Bwala claimed that insecurity in the country is being sustained not only by terrorist groups operating within Nigeria but also by external actors whose activities have made efforts to end the violence more difficult.

According to him, the insurgency in the Sahel region, which borders Nigeria, has become a major driver of the country’s security challenges, with terrorists allegedly crossing into Nigerian communities to launch attacks before retreating across international borders.

Bwala argued that beyond the cross-border threat, Nigeria is also contending with what he described as “foreign interests” working against the country’s stability.

He particularly questioned the operations of some international humanitarian organisations that moved into Borno State during the early years of the Boko Haram insurgency.

Recalling the emergence of the terrorist group, Bwala said some NGOs rented residential properties for periods ranging from 10 to 15 years, a development he described as suspicious.

“Many years ago, when Boko Haram started in Borno State, the non-governmental organisations that came for humanitarian purposes, so to speak, came and were renting houses for 10 to 15 years,” he said.

“How do you know you will need to stay for 10 to 15 years? What kind of projection did you do?”

The presidential aide further claimed that Nigerian security forces had, on several occasions, arrested foreign nationals alongside suspected Boko Haram fighters during military operations.

He alleged that the presence of foreign nationals among insurgents points to external involvement in sustaining the conflict.

“These are some of the elements that are not only fuelling the crisis, but they make the end to the crisis difficult,” Bwala said.

He added that although the military had apprehended foreign nationals linked to terrorist groups, security authorities had deliberately withheld their identities and nationalities for strategic security reasons.

His claims come as the Federal Government continues efforts to restore security across the country.