President Trump, Christian Genocide Allegation and Pliable Nigerians By Yinka Salaam

When the United States of America and its European allies hoodwinked the pliable and ignorant Libyans to wage war against their uncommon leader, Moammar Gaddafi, the West made them believe that their best ever leader they have had in modern history was their greatest enemy, little did they know that the most peaceful and most prosperous African country will soon become a war theatre and an open prison where warlords reign supreme.

In the same vein, many Nigerians, particularly the anti-establishment, appear to be happy with the recent pronouncement of President Donald Trump in his second designation of the largest black nation on earth as a Country of Particular Concern. These Nigerians practically, albeit ignorantly, celebrated the move. They include the leadership of Christendom in Nigeria, the leadership of the United Middle Belt Congress, some opposition leaders who lost out in the last election, and the beneficiaries of yesteryears slush funds – fuel subsidy regime, fuel importers, dollar subsidy, multiple exchange rates, depot operators, petroleum smugglers etc.

Little did these ignorant Nigerians know that they will be adversely impacted should Trump go ahead with his threat.

So, the question one is tempted to ask is, when did Donald Trump – an atheist, who doubted he would ever make heaven begin to love Nigeria Christians more than Sudanese, Palestinian or American Christians?

More Christians are being killed in Sudan by US/UAE-backed RSF militia, just as Christians are being daily massacred and churches are being burnt to ashes in Gaza, Palestine, yet a pyrrhic ‘Christian genocide’ with no documented evidence attracts Trump’s attention to Nigeria.

This is how the Allied Forces, succeeded in killing Saddam Hussein, butchered over a million Iraqis – innocent civilians including women and children – destroyed the oil-rich nation, stole its oil for decades and turned the hitherto prosperous country into a ghost enclave, only to later confess that Iraq never had alleged Weapon of Mass Destruction; presenting half-hearted apologies without consequences.

By the time Trump and his neo-colonialist friends must have used the ‘oppressed’ Nigerians who are presently celebrating the baseless accusation of genocide – particularly a section of the leadership of Christian Association of Nigeria – and later return to tell the world they had been ‘deceived’ about the phony ‘genocide’ claim, there may be no country called Nigeria again. In fact, those who currently call Nigeria a zoo, may not even have a place to call home soon.

Where are those ‘oppressed’ Libyans who fought Gaddafi today? Where are the PKK rebels who were used as a pretext to oust Saddam Hussein? Have they been able to form a country of theirs till date? Where is the much-celebrated Independent nation of South Sudan? Where are the rebels of Darfur Region being prodded by the West to rebel against the state of Sudan? Have they become a peaceful place since they got a country to call theirs? Are they not being massacred by the same US-backed RSF militia now?

Conspiracy Theories and the Unforgivable Sins of Tinubu’s government

What is the interest of Donald Trump in Nigeria and why does he keep tagging Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern whenever he is in power?

It should be noted that the same Trump, a confirmed racist and White supremacist had designated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern during his first tenure.

Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu has indeed committed many ‘unforgivable’ sins, and it takes a strong leader to reject slavery and be ready to pay the excruciating price for freedom and maintain national sovereignty.

1. Nigeria’s recent refusal of a request from the United States to accept hardened criminals who are not Nigerian citizens, specifically Venezuelan and other “third-country” deportees was the first offense. Nigeria’s Foreign Minister, Yusuf Tuggar had explained that Nigeria has enough internal challenges and will not be used as a “dumping ground” for people deported from the US who are not its nationals.

The Trump request that individuals who are not Nigerian citizens but who the US wanted to deport because their home countries refused to take them back Tuggar had stressed that Nigeria, with its large population and existential challenges, could not realistically or fairly take on the burden of foreign prisoners and deportees. One wonders why the US, with all its technological advancement and sophistry could not manage the ‘freed’ criminals. The question this development keeps propping up is: what does the US want to achieve with the request?

The refusal came amidst reports that the Trump led US administration was mounting considerable pressure on African countries to accept these deportees, threatening consequences such as visa restrictions and trade tariffs for non-compliance; but Nigeria viewed the decision as a matter of sovereignty and dignity, refusing to be coerced into the US’s “third-country deportation” policy.

Interestingly, while Nigeria and South Africa reportedly refused the ridiculous request, other smaller nation states like Eswatini and war-torn South Sudan have reportedly been pressured into accepting some of these deportees. Little wonder why Trump made similar accusation against South Africa: genocide of White minority in South Africa. Trump probably wants Nigeria to be war-torn so it could be forced to her knees to accept its request.

2. Perhaps, the most unforgivable sin of President Bola Tinubu’s government is the recent introduction of the 15% Fuel Import Tariff. An egocentric personality like Trump will surely go berserk should anyone weaponise his favourite instrument of war – tariffs – in a manner that doesn’t sooth Trump’s ego. For sure, Trump mis-designation of Nigeria has nothing to do with religion, rather it’s about resources and the economy. Anyone who is versatile in the political economy theory won’t be surprised that Trump went overboard upon the tariff announcement by the Nigerian government with a view to protecting the local refining company. Trump wants to squarely destroy Nigeria’s economy as Aliko Dangote moves to expand production to 1.4m bpd. The fear of low patronage from African countries and part of Europe is the beginning of wisdom for Trump.

3. The rejection of some US and EU “humanitarian NGOs” that were being used by their host countries to engineer and sponsor insurgency in Nigeria is another of the ‘sins’ of the giant of Africa. Didn’t the US lawmakers testify to the fact that the USAID and a host of other INGOs sponsor and perpetuate banditry and terrorism – including Boko Haram and ISWAP in Nigeria. The immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, Major Gen. Christopher Musa revealed this fact in a viral video, and we saw how the US retaliated with visa restrictions for some key military personnel.

These same NGOs predicted that Nigeria won’t survive beyond 2015, hence, it seems they are pained that Nigeria has survived beyond their doomsday prediction. These agents of doom are still writhing in pain and looking for ways to actualise their evil prediction. They truly want a repeat of Libya in Nigeria, and their wish shall not come to pass.

4. Recognising two-state solution: Arguably, another of Nigeria’s ‘unforgivable sin’ is that, it remains consistent with the vision of its founding fathers – non-aligned – and stuck with the two-state solution for resolving the Israel-Palestine crisis. Nigeria is not alone here, all well-meaning countries across the globe have taken this stand, except the bigoted. The recent security pact signed with Israel by Nigeria is not enough to placate the US and avert Trump mis-designation. The early Nigeria reviews the security pact with Israel the better, because Israel will surely do the bidding of the US at the expense of any security pact with Nigeria (Qatarific experience is enough a lesson here). Hence, the invention of “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, and “White Afrikaners genocide” in South Africa!

5. BRICS: Except for the uninitiated, Donald Trump pronouncement on Nigeria has long been expected by many experts and observers since Nigeria started fraternising with the multilateral intergovernmental organization called BRICS and its member States. How will anyone expect a shrewd business, transactional leader like Trump not to be at war with the most populous black nation in the world for joining the BRICS. So why won’t he mis-designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, more so, when President Tinubu apparently tilts more towards France than the US.

6. Unsuccessful coup plot: Perhaps, the rush at which Trump’s pronouncement came may not be unconnected with the reported failed coup attempt in Nigeria. The neo-colonialists had attempted, like they always do to any government that sincerely seek economic liberation of African countries; using pliable citizens and disgruntled politicians, and exploiting our primordial vulnerabilities – religion, tribalism etc. Nigeria shall neither disintegrate nor go the way of Libya, Sudan, Syria or Iraq.

7. Trump is also seeking by all means possible, to invade Nigeria because it has repeatedly refused US to have a military base in the country.

It is surprising that Trump who could not speak up on the genocide by Israel in Palestine, which was televised globally in real time, and despite ICC pronouncements on alleged war crimes against key officials of the apartheid state, could see a non-existent ‘genocide’ in Nigeria with no documented evidence whatsoever. For the sake of argument, even if we accept without conceding, that there are killings, does the killings amount to ‘genocide’? How many genocide scholars or experts support his claim?

The reality is, there are more Muslim casualties than Christians. There are more mosques bombing than churches, just as there are more abductions, kidnappings and killings in mosques than in churches.

Not many people will understand that the US designation of Nigeria is purely rooted in anarchist international politics properly referred to as realpolitik that cannot be deciphered by parochial minds or myopic individuals. With similar scenarios already played out in Libya, Sudan, Iraq, Syria, Congo, Somali, Ethiopia, Eritrea and other places around the world, bigots and “religiousprenuers” must necessarily wake up from their slumber. It is the same way some pastors lied about their churches being razed by terrorists just to secure asylum in the US.

Interestingly, while bigots and some pliable Nigerians – because of their parochial interest – are celebrating the misguided designation of Donald Trump, several American diplomats and commentators have countered his claim on a pyrrhic ‘Christian genocide’ in Nigeria.

Terrorism kills more Muslims

Just before the pronouncement, Trump’s aide, US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs at the US State Department had maintained that terrorism in Nigeria is not driven by religion or ethnicity, stressing that groups like Boko Haram and ISIS have killed more Muslims than Christians.

In an interview with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), on the disinformation campaign by a pro-Israel Senator Ted Cruz and others, alleging Christian genocide in Nigeria, Mr. Massad Boulos who noted that terrorism has no tribe, colour, or religion saying, “This is certainly unfortunate. Any loss of life is absolutely unfortunate. Those who know the terrain know that terrorism has no colour, no religion, and no tribe. We even know that Boko Haram and ISIS are killing more Muslims than Christians. This is not about one group targeting another.”

Trump’s senior envoy to Africa acknowledged the pain of affected communities in North Central Nigeria but warned against framing the conflict in purely religious terms. “There are incidents in the Middle Belt, where many farmers are Christians, but we can’t say it’s specifically targeted at a particular group,” he said.

In response, a protest expert and former presidential aspirant, Omoyele Sowore cautioned Trump on Saturday via his X handle not to attribute Nigeria’s insecurity to a religious problem, saying , decades of corruption, bad governance, and ineffective leadership are to blame for Nigeria’s current state of insecurity. He insisted that neither foreign intervention nor external aggression can solve Nigeria’s security problem.

According to him, “I understand the suffering of the Christian communities in Benue, Plateau, Gombe, and Kaduna, who are still under constant attack, just as the Muslim communities in Katsina, Zamfara, Borno, and Yobe also want protection from roving assassins.

“Nigeria should have long been cited as a Country of Concern for its persistent failure to protect its citizens,” he stated. The state has failed to protect vulnerable Christians, Muslims, and traditional faiths on all fronts. Corruption and illegitimate leadership have caused suffering for women, children, workers, students, and the elderly”, he said.

Other opposition politicians like Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi should be wary of using this ‘Christian genocide’ narrative as a pawn to seek votes from the people, as they (politicians) have done in the past to divide us. Mr. Peter Obi unfortunately got his own religious inclination campaign bursted with “Christian, take back your country” and “Yes Daddy” cliches, just as Atiku said at Arewa House that Northerners don’t need Igbo and Yoruba president. This is how desperate our politicians could be.

Unfortunately, the CAN propaganda has kept its push underground until the advent of the rumoured “Christian genocide” that was first debunked by the American envoy in Nigeria.

Interestingly, when Muslims in Maiduguri, Borno and other Northwestern States were being killed by Boko Haram and ISWAP endlessly in mosques, markets and schools with bombs and guns, no one declared Muslim Genocide. Muslim lives in the Northwest and Northeast are probably not as precious as their Christian counterparts in the North Central.

The reality is that terrorists kill Christians and Muslims with no consideration for religious inclination.

Implications of Trump’s Declaration

Nigeria is just a step away from being declared a terrorist state after being declared a Country of Particular Concern. In US laws, any country tagged a terrorist State can be invaded, Christian lenankng militias and terror groups would be armed, and economic sanctions declared against such country. Once invaded, our natural resources will be stolen and pillaged as is still being done across Libya, Iraq, Congo DR, Syria and so on.

The ‘Christian genocide’ narrative is strange to Nigeria lexicon, it’s Trump’s invention to impose a proxy war after two failed attempts – first through tariffs and then through sanctions. Policy should be guided by logic, not whims and hunches without empirical data.

African countries have had it and have suffered enough from American interventions in Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Congo DR and Ethiopia, where interference fueled the Tigray conflict, causing tension between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

Venezuela is also on the verge of being attacked by the US. The US has proved itself as the chief terrorist state, lying against countries, stoking wars across the world. It’s important for Nigeria to unite against this neo-colonialist move.

Nigerian government has thus rejected the unfounded claim, saying the designation does not reflect the realities on ground.

Meanwhile, there is no way Tinubu could have satisfied a shrewd deal maker and land grabber like Trump, while he supports the boosting of Nigeria’s local refining capabilities, joins the BRICS, stops the importation of refined petroleum products from the US, partners with China and Russia to develop critical infrastructure like rail, roads and factories and still goes ahead to impose a 15 % tariff on oil imports to protect local industries.

Like the first designation of Trump, this too shall pass and Nigeria shall survive the second term of Donald Trump.

Patriotic Nigerians recognise the long running crisis between farmers and herders in parts of Nigeria, which has often taken on religious undertones, but surely, there is no verifiable evidence of a Christian genocide in Nigeria. Nigerians must put a lie to this false allegations. Trump is only looking for a veritable market to sell many yet untested weapons of mass destruction manufactured by the deep state and military contractors in the US; and this must be resisted by all means possible.

Nigeria will certainly not move forward if it remains tied to the EU/US hegemony. While the diplomats should keep doing their job, it’s time Nigeria fully democratise its relationship with the world, become a full member of BRICS, seeks alternative allies in China, Russia, Iran, Turkey to accelerate its development, and kickstart its nuclear programme for both civil and national security goals.

Nigeria should begin to think Nigeria and Africa first, as a giant defender of Africa. Otherwise Nigeria’s growth will remain stunted and Africa will forever be left behind. After all, mi o le waku kolee joye Ile Baba e (He who fears a fall, will never truly rise up).

It’s time for America’s war drumbeats to be silenced and all the strategies used to divide Nigeria have always proved abortive. We still remember that Trump’s predecessor ‘predicted’ that Nigeria would split before the new millennium and we all witnessed that this has not happened.

In the words of Farouk Aleem Al-Egbaawiy, “Nigerians especially Christians shouldn’t fall for this sudden political care of the US. We shouldn’t forget the unfounded excuses US gave to invade Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya etc. Unfortunately, all their claims weren’t found after the invasion. Saddening enough, these countries haven’t attained social and economic stability to date.

“Nigerians! Listen! Don’t become a refugee in your country out of religious exuberance and mere emotional outbursts. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria”, Al-Egbaawiy said

For sure, Tinubu won’t end like Moammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein. We have passed this phase before. Trump designated Nigeria during the former president Muhammadu Buhari as well. So, as Buhari outlived Trump, so shall Tinubu.

Yinka Salaam writes from Lagos, Nigeria