Orji Kalu Admits Selling Heavy Weapons Internationally, Says He Sold to Anyone With Money

Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who represents Abia North Senatorial District, has disclosed that he previously operated an international arms-trading business, selling heavy weapons to buyers in different countries, including anyone who had the financial capacity to purchase them.

Kalu, a former Governor of Abia State, made the revelation during an interview on Arise Television on Monday, while discussing his business activities across Africa and his longstanding relationships with former and current South African leaders.

During the interview, the senator acknowledged that he had previously been involved in international arms trading, explaining that his business dealings involved heavy weapons transferred between countries rather than small firearms.

When the interviewer directly asked whether he was an arms dealer, Kalu answered in the affirmative but disclosed that he eventually abandoned the business following intervention by his parents.

“Yes, so I stopped because my…” he began.

Explaining why he discontinued the business, the senator said his parents, particularly his mother and father, insisted that he stop the trade.

“But my parents, my mother, my father came and said I must stop, and I stopped,” he said.

‘I Was Selling Guns to Make Money’, Orji Kalu Says

Asked whether he sold weapons to individuals who intended to use them to kill other people, Kalu dismissed the suggestion, maintaining that his primary motivation was making money rather than concerning himself with how the weapons would eventually be used.

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

The interviewer subsequently asked whether he supplied weapons to the African National Congress (ANC) during its struggle against apartheid in South Africa.

However, Kalu said his business was not restricted to the ANC or any particular political organisation, explaining that he sold weapons to anybody willing and financially capable of purchasing them.

“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.

When asked where he obtained the weapons he traded, the former Abia governor declined to disclose his suppliers or sources, describing the information as private to his business.

“It’s only my business,” he responded.

Kalu Says Weapons Were Heavy Military Equipment, Not Small Arms

The interview also touched on Nigeria’s security challenges and the proliferation of small arms, with the interviewer questioning how Kalu’s description of his former international arms dealings related to the wider problem of weapons circulation.

In response, the senator clarified that the weapons involved in his former business were not small firearms but heavy military equipment traded between countries.

“No, these are heavy arms that were sold country to country,” he said.

The interviewer also specifically asked whether Kalu had sold weapons to Libya under its former leader, Muammar Gaddafi.

Responding, the senator maintained that his business was open to anybody with the financial capacity to purchase the weapons.

“To anybody that had money to buy,” he said.

When the interviewer suggested that his response meant he had also supplied weapons to Gaddafi, Kalu did not directly confirm a specific transaction but appeared to indicate that he would have sold to the late Libyan leader if he had the money to purchase them while he was involved in the business.

“May his soul rest in peace. He was a good man. If you have money to buy, when I was selling, I would sell to you,” Kalu said.

PulseNets learnt from the interview that the senator did not disclose the period during which he operated the arms-trading business, the companies or individuals involved, the volume of weapons traded, the specific countries or buyers supplied, or whether the transactions were conducted through licensed international arms-trading arrangements.

His comments have raised questions about the nature and scale of the international arms business he described, particularly regarding the regulatory framework governing the transfer of heavy weapons between countries.

Kalu Recounts Relationships With Mandela, Mbeki and Ramaphosa

Beyond his disclosure about his former arms-trading activities, Kalu also discussed his longstanding relationships with successive South African presidents, tracing the connections to his friendship with former President and anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela.

According to the senator, Mandela introduced him to several prominent South African political figures, including former President Thabo Mbeki and the country’s current President, Cyril Ramaphosa.

Kalu recalled that Mandela once explained the political considerations surrounding the emergence of Mbeki over Ramaphosa as his running mate within the African National Congress.

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According to Kalu’s account, Mandela told him that Mbeki’s father had contributed more to the anti-apartheid struggle than Ramaphosa’s father, a consideration he said influenced the ANC’s decision to favour Mbeki.

The senator further disclosed that Mbeki subsequently introduced him to former South African President Jacob Zuma.

He explained that his relationships with South African political leaders continued across successive administrations, giving him connections with several influential figures in the country’s political history.