'I was an arms dealer; I sold weapons to whoever could afford them' – Former Abia governor Orji Kalu

• The senator has opened up about his former international arms business.

• He says he sold weapons to anyone who could afford them.

• Kalu claims he quit after his parents intervened.

Orji Uzor Kalu's interview on Arise Television took an unexpected turn when the former Abia State governor was asked about the business interests that made him money before politics.

The senator, who represents Abia North, said dealing in arms was once his major business outside Nigeria. Pressed on whether he was an arms dealer, Kalu answered simply, “Yes.”

He said, “My major business used to be outside this country to deal in arms.”

He went on to say he sold weapons to buyers who could afford them, insisting that what happened after a transaction was not his responsibility.

During the conversation, Kalu spoke about his longstanding relationship with the late former South African President Nelson Mandela, who he said introduced him to several other African leaders, including former presidents Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma, as well as current President Cyril Ramaphosa.

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Asked whether he sold weapons to people who could use them to kill others, the senator said his primary concern was making money rather than what buyers did with the weapons.

“No, no, no, no, no, no. I was selling guns to make money; whether they blow up, it’s not my business,” he said.

Kalu further disclosed that his business was not limited to any particular organisation or political group, insisting that he sold weapons to whoever was willing and able to pay.

When the interviewer asked whether he supplied arms to the African National Congress (ANC) during its struggle against apartheid in South Africa, the senator denied that his customers were restricted to the organisation.

“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 said.

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The interviewer also asked where he sourced the weapons, but Kalu declined to provide details, responding that it was his business.

He subsequently clarified that the transactions involved heavy weapons traded between countries rather than the small arms commonly associated with Nigeria's proliferation of illegal firearms.

The conversation also touched on Libya's former leader, Muammar Gaddafi, with the interviewer asking whether Kalu had sold weapons to him.

The senator did not explicitly confirm a transaction with Gaddafi but reiterated that he was willing to sell to anyone who had the money.

“To anybody that had money to buy,” he responded, before describing the late Libyan leader as a good man.

Kalu eventually explained that he left the arms business after his parents intervened. “My mother, my father came and said I must stop, and I stopped,” he said.

Watch the video below:

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Orji Uzor Kalu is a Nigerian businessman and politician who served as governor of Abia State between 1999 and 2007. He was first elected to the Senate in 2019 to represent Abia North and secured re-election in 2023 under the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Before entering politics, Kalu established the SLOK Group, a business conglomerate with interests in several sectors, including media. He is associated with publications such as The Sun and New Telegraph.

His political career has been marked by controversy, including his corruption trial over the alleged diversion and laundering of approximately ₦7.65 billion belonging to Abia State. 

A Federal High Court convicted him and sentenced him to 12 years in prison in 2019, but the Supreme Court nullified the conviction in 2020 after ruling that the trial judge lacked jurisdiction when he delivered the judgment. His retrial has remained subject to further legal battles. 

Kalu has also faced controversy over the withdrawal of his degree by Abia State University. Despite these issues, he remains an influential political figure and currently chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission.