Tinubu’s Hands Unbound: Ex-Lawmaker Says Troop Deployment To Benin Falls Within Presidential Powers

Former federal lawmaker and political scholar, Mojeed Alabi, has justified President Bola Tinubu’s decision to deploy Nigerian military personnel to Benin Republic, insisting that the move is constitutionally backed.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Speaking on Tuesday during Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Alabi stressed that the President acted within the powers granted to him under the 1999 Constitution.

He argued that the Constitution does not bar the Commander-in-Chief from taking swift military action in response to a security emergency.

“What people are quoting is inaccurate. The Constitution does not require the President to seek approval before deploying troops,” he said. “What it states is that he cannot keep the military outside Nigeria for more than seven days without notifying the National Assembly. There is a clear distinction.”

Alabi explained that urgent national security situations often leave no room for prolonged legislative processes.

He added: “The lawful sequence is that the President acts first, then briefs the National Assembly. If lawmakers ratify the action, the deployment continues. If not, the troops are withdrawn.

“If leaders have to wait for parliamentary debates each time a crisis erupts, no nation would survive. Globally, rapid response comes first — look at the U.S. operation that took out Osama bin Laden; Americans only learned about it after it succeeded.”

When asked why the government appears more reactive to external threats than internal ones, Alabi explained that bandits and Boko Haram fighters operate in remote forests and ungoverned territories, making internal responses significantly more complex.