Despite the unabated killings in Nigeria and the recent warning by U.S. President Donald Trump, who accused Nigerian terrorists of carrying out a Christian genocide, officials of the Nigerian government should focus their efforts on ending the violence rather than fixating on dismissing the genocide claim.
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), last week added his voice to the dismissal of U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim about the genocide of Christians, stating that there was no systematic targeted killing of Christians or any religious group in Nigeria.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, on Thursday also described the claim as dangerous and inaccurate.
Many would have thought that Fagbemi would have revealed what his office is either doing or has done to the perpetrators of killings, but instead, the administration is so determined to dismiss the claim. Yet, the recent killings and abductions in different parts of the country suggest that insecurity is getting worse.
Trump was angry partly due to the lack of accountability and justice for the victims, which is the area that concerns Fagbemi as the AGF.
With the United States’ pressure on President Bola Tinubu’s administration to do something about its claim, the president’s soldiers seem to be deploying the wrong tactics.
It is okay to defend your country from a foreign narrative. It is okay to want to show that you can be in control of a perceived situation but when that energy is expended in dismissing a claim, you not only erode public confidence but also risk the lives of citizens.
The past few weeks have seen the country plunge into one of its darkest days. From the gory killings of Christians during a service in Kwara to the abduction of schoolgirls in Kebbi, bringing back the painful memory of the notorious 2014 Chibok Girls abduction, insecurity in Nigeria is spiralling, and the consequences may be deadlier than imagined if not urgently contained.
The average Nigerian has grown so weary of endless rhetoric and counterclaims. The country is bleeding for peace and unity, a demand that may well become the litmus test for this administration, already accused by the opposition of deepening ethnic divides.
Therefore, Tinubu and his administration should focus that energy on ending the killings instead of debunking genocide claims.
