Former South-East spokesman for President Bola Tinubu, Josef Onoh, has distanced the President from remarks attributed to APC chieftain Joe Igbokwe, who suggested that the kidnapping of schoolchildren was being used as a strategy to undermine Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.

In a statement issued on Saturday, Onoh said President Bola Tinubu “does not share the apparent sentiments embedded in Igbokwe’s intervention, nor is he engaged in any form of political brinkmanship with the blood of Nigerians.”

Igbokwe had earlier claimed in a widely circulated publication that kidnappings of schoolchildren were aimed at preventing Tinubu’s re-election, describing such actions as a “poor strategy”. He also called on state governors to take greater responsibility for security within their jurisdictions, while describing kidnapping as a “huge and lucrative business”.

Responding, Onoh said such framing risks suggesting “systemic federal helplessness or a subtle call to fragment national security architecture”, stressing that it does not reflect the President’s position.

He maintained that the administration’s security approach remains “resolute” and focused on “multi-layered strategic engagement aimed at eradicating insecurity at its roots, rather than managing or shifting responsibility for it.”

Onoh outlined ongoing government efforts, including intensified military and intelligence operations against banditry, terrorism and kidnapping networks across several regions, alongside improved coordination between air and land forces.

He also cited reported rescue operations in states such as Kebbi and Kwara, claiming they were carried out with “direct presidential oversight and commendations for security agencies”, as well as broader measures involving infrastructure support, youth empowerment programmes and agricultural initiatives aimed at reducing vulnerability to crime.

“These efforts reflect a clear strategic focus: decimate the criminal ecosystems making kidnapping ‘lucrative,’ rather than merely negotiating with or accommodating them,” he said.

Onoh further described Igbokwe’s comments as “highly insensitive to the collective sensibilities of Nigerians”, particularly families affected by abductions, adding that reducing insecurity to political calculations risks “victim-blaming by implication”.

He urged political actors to avoid statements that could inflame tensions, insisting that insecurity in Nigeria predates the current administration and stems from long-standing structural challenges, including weak borders, arms proliferation and economic hardship.

“President Tinubu remains focused on delivering a safer, more prosperous Nigeria,” he said, adding that the administration’s “operational intensity and root-cause interventions speak louder than any single publication.”