President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has once again strongly refuted allegations that a genocide against Christians is taking place in Nigeria, maintaining that neither Christians nor Muslims are being systematically targeted for elimination.
The President stated this position on Friday in Abuja while declaring open the 8th Biennial Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Nasrul-Lahi-l-Fatih Society (NASFAT). He was represented at the event by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi.
Terrorism, Not Persecution
Tinubu argued that the violence plaguing the nation is a result of criminality and extremism rather than religious persecution. He warned that spreading false narratives about religious cleansing poses a danger to national unity.
He said:
“These allegations are not only false but harmful. They are capable of inflaming passions and disrupting the peaceful coexistence we continue to build as a nation,”
He emphasized that the government does not support any policy that persecutes specific religious groups, pointing out that victims of violence cut across all faiths.
He noted:
“Muslims and Christians alike have suffered from terrorism in Nigeria, and they stand shoulder to shoulder in condemning violence from any quarter.
“As President, I reiterate with all sense of responsibility and fidelity to the Constitution that there is no Christian genocide in Nigeria, and there is no Muslim genocide in Nigeria. What we have is terrorism driven by criminality and extremism, challenges we are working tirelessly to overcome,”
Response to International Pressure
These remarks serve as a direct rebuttal to recent comments by United States President Donald Trump, who alleged that Christians were being targeted in Nigeria. Trump had threatened to deploy U.S. military forces if the situation was not addressed and designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern.”
Tinubu, however, insisted that the root causes of insecurity are historical, economic, and criminal, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to protecting the lives and religious freedom of all citizens