ABUJA: Former Abia State Governor and Senator representing Abia North, Orji Uzor Kalu, has disclosed that he was previously involved in the international arms trade, revealing that he sold heavy weapons to buyers across different countries, irrespective of their identities, as long as they could afford them.

Kalu made the revelation during an interview on Arise Television on Monday, November 9, 2026, while discussing his business history and longstanding relationships with former and serving South African leaders.

The former governor acknowledged that he operated as an arms dealer before eventually abandoning the business following pressure from his parents, who reportedly insisted that he discontinue the trade.

When asked directly whether he was an arms dealer, Kalu answered in the affirmative, explaining that his decision to quit was influenced by his parents.

He said his mother and father personally intervened and demanded that he stop the business, a request he eventually honoured.

However, when the interviewer questioned whether he was concerned about the possibility of weapons he sold being used to kill people, the senator dismissed the suggestion, maintaining that his primary motivation was commercial.

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

Providing further details about the nature of his former business, Kalu said he did not restrict his customers to any particular political movement, government or country.

When asked whether he supplied weapons to the African National Congress (ANC) during its struggle against apartheid in South Africa, he said his business was open to anyone willing to pay.

“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 stated.

The senator declined to disclose where he sourced the weapons, describing such information as strictly private business matters.

When pressed about the nature of the weapons he traded, particularly against the backdrop of Nigeria’s persistent challenges with illegal firearms and small arms proliferation, Kalu insisted that his business involved heavy weapons rather than small arms.

No, these are heavy arms that were sold country to country, he explained.

The interview also raised questions about whether Kalu had supplied weapons to Libya during the leadership of its late former president, Muammar Gaddafi.

Responding to the question, the senator maintained that he sold weapons to anyone with the financial capacity to purchase them.

To anybody that had money to buy, he said.

When the interviewer suggested that his response implied that he had sold arms to Gaddafi, Kalu did not provide a direct confirmation or denial. Instead, he responded: “May his soul rest in peace. He was a good man. If you have money to buy, when I was selling, I will sell to you.

His comments have drawn attention to the international dimension of his former business activities, particularly his admission that the transactions involved heavy weapons transferred between countries.

Beyond his disclosure about the arms trade, Kalu also spoke about his longstanding relationships with successive South African political leaders.

He traced the relationships to his friendship with former South African President Nelson Mandela, whom he said introduced him to several prominent figures in the country’s political establishment.

According to Kalu, Mandela introduced him to former President Thabo Mbeki and current President Cyril Ramaphosa.

He also recalled a conversation in which Mandela reportedly explained that Mbeki’s father had contributed more to the anti-apartheid struggle than Ramaphosa’s father.

Kalu said Mandela’s explanation was connected to the African National Congress’s decision to select Mbeki rather than Ramaphosa as his running mate.

He further disclosed that Mbeki subsequently introduced him to former South African President Jacob Zuma, with his relationships continuing across successive administrations.

The senator’s disclosure about his former arms-dealing activities emerged during the same interview in which he discussed his political and business connections across Africa.

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