Nigeria: Presidency Hails Trump's Letter to Tinubu, Attacks Opposition Over Election Optics

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying a Premium Times report from Abuja dated 23 July 2026, reported that Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, framed a recent letter from U.S. President Donald Trump as a sign of stronger Nigeria-U.S. security cooperation. Bwala made the comments during an interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today.

According to the report, Trump’s 6 July letter praised Tinubu’s leadership on insecurity, including violence affecting Christian communities, and promised continued U.S. backing for counterterrorism efforts. The correspondence was released by Bayo Onanuga, the president’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, and was said to have followed an earlier letter from Tinubu. Bwala argued that the exchange was not an attempt by Abuja to seek foreign approval, but reflected existing collaboration, including intelligence sharing, training and air operations. He also cited the reported killing of a senior ISIS commander in a joint operation as evidence of practical results.

Premium Times reported that Bwala said both leaders shared an interest in fighting terrorism, while any differences over whether attacks were directed at particular faith groups or broadly affected Nigerians would be handled when they meet. He also pointed to a recent visit by a senior U.S. official and improvements in Borno State as signs of wider international and domestic confidence in the administration’s security approach.

The article also said Bwala sharply criticized opposition figures who questioned the letter, accusing them of raising security-related allegations for electoral purposes. He singled out African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, challenged critics to offer alternatives, and faulted parts of the Nigerian media for what he described as selective coverage of the government’s security record.