ORJI KALU ADMITS SELLING HEAVY WEAPONS TO INTERNATIONAL BUYERS
Read Time:2 Minute, 49 Second
By ‘Balogun Ibrahim
Senator representing Abia North, Orji Kalu, has revealed that he previously engaged in the international arms trade, selling heavy weapons to buyers across different countries before quitting the business following pressure from his parents.
Kalu made the disclosure during an interview on Arise Television on Monday, where he discussed his longstanding relationships with former and current South African leaders.
The former Abia State governor explained that his business interests once extended beyond Nigeria, including the sale of heavy weapons from one country to another.
When asked by the interviewer whether he had been an arms dealer, Kalu answered in the affirmative, before explaining why he eventually left the business.
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According to him, his parents insisted that he discontinue the trade, a request he said he honoured.
“But my parents, my mother, my father came and said I must stop, and I stopped,” he said.
Asked whether he sold weapons to individuals who intended to use them to kill others, the senator dismissed the suggestion, maintaining that his primary motivation was to make money.
“No, no, no, no, no, no. I was selling guns to make money, whether they blow up it’s not my business,” he said.
The interviewer further asked whether he supplied weapons to the African National Congress (ANC) during its struggle against apartheid in South Africa.
However, Kalu said he did not sell exclusively to the ANC, explaining that his customers included anyone who could afford to purchase the weapons.
“No, I was selling to anybody who wants to buy. If you have the money, you want to buy in D.R.C, I sell to you, you want to buy in Namibia, you want to buy…” he stated.
When asked about the source of the weapons, the lawmaker declined to provide details, saying, “It’s only my business.”
The interviewer also raised concerns about the proliferation of small arms in Nigeria, questioning how Kalu’s account of his former business related to the country’s security challenges.
In response, the senator clarified that he dealt in heavy weapons rather than small arms, describing the trade as transactions involving countries.
“No, no, these are heavy arms that were sold country to country,” he said.
Asked whether he had sold weapons to Libya under its late leader, Muammar Gaddafi, Kalu replied that he sold to anyone who had the financial means to purchase them.
When the interviewer suggested that this implied he had supplied arms to Gaddafi, the senator responded, “May his soul rest in peace. He was a good man. If you have money to buy, when I was selling, I would sell to you.”
During the interview, Kalu also discussed his relationships with successive South African leaders, which he traced to his friendship with the country’s former President, Nelson Mandela.
He said Mandela introduced him to several South African presidents, including Thabo Mbeki and the incumbent, Cyril Ramaphosa.
According to Kalu, Mandela once told him that Mbeki’s father had made greater contributions to the anti-apartheid struggle than Ramaphosa’s father. He said this influenced the ANC’s decision to select Mbeki over Ramaphosa as Mandela’s running mate.
Kalu added that Mbeki later introduced him to former President Jacob Zuma, with his relationships with South African leaders continuing across successive administrations.
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