A Washington-based US government adviser and consultant, Dr. Karl Von Batten, has described the administration of President Bola Tinubu as a “Narco State”, alleging that the Nigerian government is using State institutions to shield the President from scrutiny over longstanding allegations concerning drug trafficking.
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Batten, who describes himself as a close Republican ally of US President Donald Trump, made the allegations on Sunday in a post on X while reacting to comments by Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo.
Keyamo had dismissed efforts to secure the release of documents relating to allegations that Tinubu was involved in heroin trafficking in the United States, describing the campaign as a “storm in a teacup” and a “journey to nowhere.”
But Batten questioned why a Nigerian cabinet minister would respond to what Keyamo had characterised as a minor lobbying effort.
He wrote: “Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation (@fkeyamo) claims that our fight for the release of Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s (@officialABAT) alleged heroin-trafficking records is a ‘storm in a teacup; journey to nowhere’.
“The world should then ask a simple question: Why then is a Cabinet-level Nigerian Minister spending his time and effort rushing to respond to a small American lobbying firm?”
Batten went further, accusing the Nigerian Presidency of deploying government institutions to protect Tinubu from scrutiny ahead of future elections.
He alleged that the Federal Government was behaving like a “Narco State” and claimed, without providing new evidence in the post, that the FBI had linked Tinubu to a criminal organisation involved in smuggling heroin from Nigeria into the United States during the 1980s and 1990s.
“The Nigerian Presidency is acting like a Narco State, using the levers of the State to protect its alleged drug-dealing President, Bola #Tinubu,” he alleged.
The claims come amid renewed controversy in Nigeria and the United States over previously reported allegations concerning Tinubu’s past and records held by US authorities.
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Batten also disclosed that his firm plans to brief officials in the Trump administration and members of the US Congress on the matter.
He said the proposed briefing would be titled: “Senior Nigerian Government Officials Rushing to Protect Their Alleged Drug-Trafficker President.”
According to him, his organisation’s role is to lobby US policymakers, raise public awareness and keep members of Congress focused on the issue.
“We are Lobbyists and Advocates. Our job is to build the case before the White House and Congress, increase U.S. public awareness, and keep Members of Congress focused on the issue,” he said.
Batten further claimed that the Nigerian government had “walked into a trap” through its response to the campaign, alleging that the administration’s reaction had drawn greater attention to the issue.
He also raised concerns over the alleged movement of South American drug traffickers into Nigeria, asking why the country was reportedly becoming attractive to international narcotics networks.
“President #Tinubu and his enabling Ministers are too incensed to realise that they walked into a trap,” Batten said.
“We believe the Nigerian government under President #Tinubu is a Narco State, and the U.S. should ask: Why are South American drug traffickers flocking to Nigeria?”
The allegations by Batten have not, in themselves, established that the Tinubu administration is a “Narco State” or that the President is involved in drug trafficking. They remain claims made by Batten amid an ongoing political and legal controversy over Tinubu’s past and alleged US records.