Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has strongly condemned the Canadian Embassy’s refusal to grant a visa to Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa.
General Musa revealed on Thursday, during the inaugural annual lecture of the National Association of the Institute for Security Studies, that he and several members of his team were denied visas to attend a ceremony in Canada to honor war veterans.
Speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Friday, Tunji-Ojo expressed his disapproval of the action, emphasizing that it showed a lack of respect for Nigeria as a nation.
“Without knowing the full facts, I think even for us, the issue of reciprocity has to be given due consideration,” the minister said. “As much as we are not ready to interfere in the sovereignty of other nations, the issue of visas, and migration management, is a sovereign issue. If this can happen to the Chief of Defence Staff, then I am worried for the treatment of an average Nigerian.”
Tunji-Ojo also questioned the Canadian embassy’s actions, expressing confusion about how such a denial could be justified. He stressed that even if there were concerns, diplomatic backchannels should have been used to address them.
“It is disrespectful to the country, and it is disrespectful to us as a people. We should not allow this to stand,” he added, expressing confidence that Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs would take the necessary steps to address the matter diplomatically.
Meanwhile, National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu also weighed in on the issue, criticizing Canada’s actions and expressing anger at the denial of visas to General Musa and other top Nigerian military officers.
“Thank you for the courage to say Canada denied you visas. They can go to hell,” Ribadu declared at the same event. “Even though it’s painful and disrespectful, we are peaceful and strong, and I agree with you that it is time to fix our country. This is just another reason why we work hard to make Nigeria work.”
Ribadu also praised General Musa for his “purposeful leadership” in the fight against insecurity in Nigeria, highlighting the growing collaboration among security agencies across the country.
