In September, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced a bill in the US Senate seeking to redesignate Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” for alleged violation of religious freedom. Before the controversy that followed could settle, US President Donald Trump, in a social media post on October 31, said he had designated Nigeria as a CPC, “because Christianity is facing an existential threat” in the most populous African country.
In a subsequent social media post on November 1, Trump said he had instructed the US Department of War to prepare for possible action in Nigeria. He also threatened to cut off aid and assistance to the country.
“If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, gun-a-blazing’ to wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities. I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians,” he said.
Expectedly, the Nigerian leader, President Bola Tinubu, and other senior officials of his government have denied President Trump’s claim, insisting that people of other faiths are also being killed.
Since the matter began in September, Nigerian Christian leaders and associations have also been speaking on it. Read their comments below:
Pastor Enoch Adeboye of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG)
At a meeting with his “children” after the monthly holy ghost night of the church in the early hours of Saturday, November 7, Pastor Enoch Adeboye said if he had the opportunity of reaching President Tinubu, he would tell him “to move fast, move diplomatically, move wisely. He should find a way to convince the US president to delay his actions for about 100 days and then come home and tell our security chiefs to get rid of these terrorists within 90 days or resign.”
He added, ‘I am sure this will sound familiar. There was a president, Buhari, who issued such an order. He is not around to tell you who gave him that advice. He ran with that advice, but he did not follow it through. The security operatives moved fast, but three months went by and the work was not done.
“I went to see him. It was in the news. This time, the press got to know I visited him. Unfortunately, he is not alive now. I asked him why he did not follow through, why he didn’t proceed with his threat. I won’t tell you the details of our meeting. But one thing came out of that meeting which will lead me to my next advice.”
President Tinubu should “make it clear to them (security chiefs) that they are not only to eliminate the terrorists, they should eliminate their sponsors, no matter how influential.
“We must take note of the fact that if the US should attack us, China is not coming to defend us, Russia won’t defend us. All the so-called world leaders will talk. They will condemn what America has done in the strongest terms. But they will not come to help us. Britain will not come and help us.
“No other foreign powers will come to our aid. This is not the time for joking. It is not the time for grammar. It is not the time you begin to argue, saying not only Christians alone are being killed, but Muslims are also involved. The fact is that innocent people are dying.”
The RCCG Overseer said he almost spoke last month when he heard the speech of “my in-law, the president. Particularly, that section that spoke about security. When I heard him say All is well now, that the displaced people have returned to their villages. I almost said the person who wrote that speech for my president, my in-law, does not like him.
“The question is, didn’t he see the speech before he read it? My conclusion will be, several people around my beloved in-law are not telling him the truth. The following day after that speech, we read in the news of a traditional ruler being killed while in the house with his wife.”
Adeboye said he had always refrained from making public statements because he is under the authority of CAN, “I have discovered in the Bible that a man not under authority cannot cast out a demon.”
Pastor Wale Adefarasin of Guiding Light Assembly
In a video that went viral, Pastor Wale Adefarasin criticised what he described as an exaggerated Western narrative portraying Nigerian Christians as victims of genocide.
“For 40 years that I’ve been a Christian, there have been killings in southern Kaduna, killings on the Plateau, and riots. This isn’t new. It’s wrong, yes—but it’s not genocide. The way the West talks about it, you’d think a Christian can’t step outside without being killed.”
The cleric acknowledged that attacks on Christians in parts of the country were real and condemnable, but insisted they were not part of a new or coordinated extermination campaign.
Adefarasin went further to suggest that the West’s renewed concern might be less about religion and more about Nigeria’s growing economic and strategic significance.
“I’m trying to understand this sudden affection for Christians. Is it because Nigeria now has one of the largest refineries in the world and no longer needs to export crude? Or is it about the new minerals in our soil that are vital for nuclear energy and electric vehicles?”
Pastor Dr Paul Enenche of Dunamis Int’ l Gospel Centre
While leading his congregation in prayer on Sunday, November 9, the Senior Pastor of the Dunamis International Gospel Center, DIGC, Dr Paul Enenche, rained curses on terrorists, bandits, and their sponsors and collaborators and warned them to stop their activities.
He said, “Every agent of the devil in Nigeria, agent of bloodshed, they call themselves terrorists, they call themselves kidnappers, bandits, evil herdsmen from hell, or jihadists, and their collaborators, sponsors, and those who imported them into Nigeria, I have bad news for you.
“Your time is up. Every day for the thief but one day for the owner, we have been praying, and we are not going to stop praying until the earth that drinks the blood of innocent citizens drinks your own blood and swallows you up.
“Importers of terrorists, sponsors and collaborators and sympathisers of terrorists and the terrorists themselves, get ready, it is your season of judgement, the land of Nigeria will swallow you up, and we shall have a nation of freedom, where people can be free to live unto the God they want to serve.
“There will be no hiding place for any devil, no matter how high or how low”.
Bishop David Abioye of Living Word Conquerors Global Assembly
Speaking during a sermon, Bishop Abioye said, “Information with facts can’t be thwarted. You see people being buried in hundreds, and you said there is no genocide? What a wicked set of people!
“I agree that there are other people killed in other places for other reasons, but Christian genocide is very clear and gradually, it is eating down to the South.
“Southwest and Southeast, and many so-called leaders, for their personal interests, are claiming that it is not true.”
Bishop Francis Wale Oke, President of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN)
While addressing journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, Bishop Oke said, “There is Christian genocide in Nigeria. There is no other name to call it. No Christian group is attacking Muslims. Patience of the church is being stretched.”
He clarified that the violence is perpetrated by radical groups such as Boko Haram, ISWAP, and their splinter factions, who profess Islam during the onslaught, and not by the Muslim community at large.
Oke expressed appreciation to Trump for raising concerns over the plight of Christians but urged against any invasion, stressing that cooperation with the Nigerian government is the preferred solution.
“President Tinubu should ask for the cooperation of President Trump instead of opposing him. The President should root out radical groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP. Work together so Nigerians can live in peace,” he said.
The PFN leader also stressed the constitutional duty of the federal government to protect all citizens, noting that while the current administration inherited the security challenges, decisive action is urgently needed.
“Government should stand up and not play politics with it. President Tinubu and the federal government need to cooperate with Trump to deal with this cancer,” Oke added.
In another briefing on Sunday, November 9, Bishop Oke said, “Where is Leah Sharibu? What happened to the Chibok girls? Chibok is a predominantly Christian community in Borno State.
“What is going on in Benue State? Since Donald Trump cried foul against Nigeria on the matter of genocide, many more people are being killed in Plateau State.”
“We are not accusing the Muslim community, get me clear. We have been living together for ages in mutual respect and harmony.
“It is the violent sect of Islam that is called Boko Haram and ISWAP and co., that use the name of Islam to attack churches. Hundreds of churches had been burnt down; tens of thousands of Christians had been massacred. Hundreds of pastors had been butchered.
“It would be a desecration to the blood of these Nigerians to call it any other name. There is not a single instance of a Christian group attacking Muslims. It is always the other way round.
“What about the kidnapping of our girls, and they would marry them off without the consent of their parents, which is going on rampantly in the North?
“Now, when Donald Trump said there is genocide against the church and Christians in Nigeria, some people are complaining. There is nothing to complain about.
“We should properly identify the malaise so we can deal with it effectively. You don’t call cancer a headache. This is something that is consuming our country, and it is giving us a bad name all over the world, and the patience of the church is being stretched.”
The bishop added, “To every honest Nigerian, there is no controversy about whether there is genocide against the church and Christians in Nigeria.
“Hundreds of churches have been burnt, tens of thousands of Christians massacred, and hundreds of pastors butchered.
“What about Taraba? What about Southern Kaduna? Thanks God for the new governor. These are predominantly Christian sections of Nigeria.
“What about the Owo massacre? Who are the killers? In those cases, there was not a single case of the Christians rising to kill the Muslims – no.
“There is no controversy about whether there is genocide against the church and Christians in Nigeria.”
Rev. Joshua Iginla of Champions Royal Assembly
Speaking on the matter, Reverend Iginla said, “I believe our president is a compassionate president. But one of the greatest things that happens…I have the opportunity to meet with so many presidents in Africa. And I can assure you that our greatest problem is that most African leaders have sycophants around them, who tell them what they want to hear. Misinformation. And I believe that if he knows the reality on the ground, he will do what is needful. I could remember Rev. Dachum Ezekiel.
“I think it is only somebody that is blind that will say Christians are not being killed. Christians are being killed, so also Muslims are being killed. But the truth of the matter is that there is a mass burial of Christians in this country. It is much.
“I don’t know if it is true that CAN was dismissing that. But if it is true, I think the leadership of CAN should go and make a good investigation about that.
“Are we saying that to incite misunderstanding among believers in this country? No. We are saying that we know that the government of the day has tried its best so much to degrade all that is happening in terms of terrorist attacks and the rest. They can do much better, even more than this. They should investigate and look down…
“I have reverend friends, they are calling me from some zones. Plateau State is the home of peace and tourism. A lot of things are happening. It is condemnable for anybody to sit down and say that Christians are not being killed. They are being killed.
“That is not to put the current government in a bad light, but that is to make sure that our security operatives hear the cry of the people in the zones. The truth is that we need to do something about it.
“But in terms of the declaration of President Trump, I don’t want to go into those politics. My concern is to see how believers are safe and not to go in…All this international politics, they have their dimensions and their turn. So, it is very important that we pray that believers are safe in Nigeria.”
Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith Church, aka Winners Chapel
Recently recalling what he said about the killings previously, Bishop Oyedepo said, “A lot of people were washing their mouths on me in 2015 when I told them we were heading for trouble. He (God) told me. I warned them. I saw trouble, I saw Nigeria under stress. He confided in me (saying), Warn them.
“I am a zero beneficiary of any political era in my life. Ask them. I never take a ballot box in my life. I have grown outside that realm by grace. When I wasn’t grown, when I was crawling, it was not God’s plan for my life. I will still tell you whether you want to hear or not. Now see your trouble. Since 2015. You can’t access His plan because you are experienced in the faith. You need to be in love. He showed me.
CAN President, Archbishop Daniel Okoh
CAN President
In a statement, Bishop Okoh said, “The National leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has followed with deep concern the recent conversations surrounding faith, violence, and the true cost of insecurity across the country. In moments such as these, when passions rise and interpretations differ, it becomes necessary to speak clearly, truthfully, and with compassion.
“CAN affirms, without hesitation, that many Christian communities in parts of Nigeria, especially in the North, have suffered severe attacks, loss of life, and the destruction of places of worship. These realities are painful reminders of the urgent need for government and security agencies to act decisively to protect every citizen, regardless of region.
“Over the years, CAN and the wider Christian community have worked tirelessly to draw attention, both nationally and internationally, to the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. The Association has established mechanisms for recording incidents of religiously motivated killings, engaged with international partners, written to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, and hosted global Christian organisations such as the World Evangelical Alliance and the Lausanne Movement. These sustained efforts demonstrate CAN’s consistent advocacy for justice, peace, and the protection of Christian communities under threat.
“Our concern remains that these cries for justice and protection are too often met with delay or denial. We therefore renew our call on government and security agencies to take urgent, transparent, and equitable action to end the killings, safeguard vulnerable Christian communities from displacement, and ensure that perpetrators face the full weight of the law. The pain of Christian families torn apart by violence must never be treated as mere statistics.
“CAN acknowledges the efforts of government and security agencies in responding to the nation’s security challenges, but urges that these efforts be redoubled towards equitable protection for all. It is equally imperative that perpetrators of violence are brought swiftly and transparently to justice. We also appeal to all Christian leaders to continue to speak and act with wisdom, unity, and faith, knowing that peace is too fragile to be taken for granted.
“Nigeria’s healing will not come from denial or blame, but from courage: the courage to face our collective failures, to grieve together, and to rebuild trust within our communities. Only then can our nation rise from its wounds and embrace a future of genuine peace.”
Bishop Matthew Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto
“I believe that over the years, Nigeria has sinned and fallen short. Under the Buhari administration, its egregious persecution of Christians was visible. I accepted and encouraged the designation of Nigeria as a Country of Concern. In their statement dated December 11th, 2020 (a day after the Human Rights Day), the Trump administration said: Governments whose leaders have allowed perpetrators of vicious persecution to act with impunity pose a national security threat to the United States and the world.
“I do believe that today, acts of impunity still persist, but it is my view that re-designating Nigeria a Country of Concern will hurt the initiatives we are working on with the current government to collectively resolve the nagging problems of first, the persecution of Christians, and of course, the larger issues of ending the mindless killings of our citizens. Designating my country, Nigeria, a Country of Concern will only make our work in the area of dialogue among religious leaders in our country and elsewhere with the Nigerian state even harder. It will only increase tensions, sow doubt, open windows of suspicion and fear, and simply allow the criminals and perpetrators of violence to exploit. What Nigeria needs now is more vigilance by the organisations such as the ACIN and civil society groups to continue to press for change and to deliberately work to end impunity.
“I believe that the Obama and Biden administrations were complicit in the way they handled the fight against Boko Haram under the Presidency of Goodluck Jonathan. The country was already making progress. The decision to block Nigeria’s access to the required weapons to end this violence by the Obama administration and their drive to impose President Buhari on Nigeria pushed back this fight.
“I therefore appeal to President Donald Trump, who is already working hard to show that a peaceful world is possible with his historic achievement in the Middle East, to lift the ban and allow Nigeria access to the military tools it requires to free our country from the stranglehold of these evil men. I believe this will set us on a course to end the violence that extremist groups and merchants of death have inflicted on us.”