A former National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Lai Olurode, has warned Nigerians calling for foreign intervention over the country’s security challenges to reconsider their position, citing the United States’ actions in Venezuela under former President Donald Trump.
In a statement obtained in Osogbo on Sunday, Olurode said recent developments in Venezuela, including the invasion of the country and the seizure of President Nicolas Maduro, showed that the United States’ primary motivation in foreign interventions is the control of global energy resources, not humanitarian concerns.
He cautioned Nigerians, particularly those urging the US to intervene to protect Christians or address insecurity, to draw lessons from Venezuela’s experience.
According to Olurode, the actions of the Trump administration demonstrate a disregard for national sovereignty and the right of countries to determine their own paths.
“With the invasion of Venezuela and the seizure of its President together with its oil fields, the very notions of sovereignty, tolerance of diversity, and democracy have been reduced to mere rhetoric,” he said.
He argued that claims of humanitarian intervention or concern over religious persecution were being used as a cover for broader geopolitical and economic interests.
“It is now evident that America is neither after weapons of mass destruction nor genuinely interested in claims of Christian genocide in Nigeria. America’s primary concern and motivation is the control of global energy resources,” Olurode stated.
The former INEC commissioner further alleged that Trump’s approach to global affairs undermines peaceful coexistence among nations and exposes weaker countries to exploitation.
“The rights of small and weak nations are vulnerable to being trampled upon at will. Ostensibly, Trump targets energy resources, but this appears to be a smokescreen for wider global dominance in knowledge, communication and culture,” he said.
Olurode warned that no country, including those in Europe, would ultimately be immune from such aggressive foreign policies, and called on nations to collectively promote global peace, respect for sovereignty and the right of peoples to self-governance.
He concluded by urging Nigerians advocating foreign military involvement to reconsider their stance, insisting that the invasion of Venezuela and the seizure of its president remain indefensible on any rational grounds.
