‘When the roots are deep, there is no reason to fear the wind.’ – African proverb
A potentially damaging campaign against Nigeria is gaining ground in sensitive and influential circles at the international level, particularly in the United States. Its goals appear to be to isolate and cripple Nigeria’s influence globally, limit its capacity to influence events around Israel and Palestine, and deepen internal religious fault lines in a country where faith is a valuable political currency. Basically, the campaign claims that Nigeria tolerates and encourages systemic religious persecution against Christian citizens in their thousands and demands that the international community sanction the country and protect Christians. While these types of allegations are not new, they are worrisome now because they appear to be contrived entirely from fiction and are intended to achieve maximum impact within the shortest period possible. The goal appears to be to stimulate President Trump’s massive appetite for operating outside established and predictable conduct, to punish Nigeria with labels and isolation, so that a country already weakened by its own leaders will remain on its knees and become even more irrelevant in an intensely competitive world. This will please interests that could be hurt by an assertive and confident Nigeria as the world agonizes over the seeming free fall of global values and the integrity of its institutions.
In March this year, the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee acted on the testimony of Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Diocese of Makurdi and advised President Trump to impose sanctions on Nigeria as a result of widespread persecution of Christians in the country. Since then, a variety of sources have piled on pressure to draw attention to Nigeria as a country hostile to Christians and therefore deserving of sanctions. From popular TV personality Phil Maher, who reeled out incredulous numbers of Christians allegedly killed in Nigeria, to U.S. senators and pressure groups speaking for Christian communities, an effort appears to be gaining momentum to promote the fiction that Nigeria is unsafe for Christians, who are being specifically targeted by ‘Islamist’ groups. This campaign will likely succeed in placing Nigeria under some form of sanction, as it had experienced earlier at the hands of the U.S.
Now, Marco Rubio has stepped up to get Nigeria blacklisted as a country hostile to Christians. If his initiative succeeds, Nigeria could come under sanctions and even hostile action by the United States. More serious is the possibility that Nigeria is the target of assaults from powerful interests in the U.S., in particular, at a time when it has a very weak capacity to protect itself. With a global environment in punishing and unsettling flux, nations – even strong ones with deep links – are unsure where they stand in relation to familiar protocols or standards. Nigeria has one of the largest Muslim populations in the world. Those who worry over reactions to the genocide in Gaza and the free hand lent to Israel by the U.S. and Europe to complete the weakening of the Arab and Muslim world watch the reactions of Nigerian Muslims very closely.
But Nigerian Muslim leaders and the Nigerian government have remained substantially aligned with the world that has been content with Israel’s outrageous treatment of Palestinians, despite a series of indictments and condemnations by international regulators and monitors who have described Israeli actions as genocide many times over. For a world that had shared Jewish people’s labelling of their experiences during the Second World War as genocide, the term – when applied against any nation – should be an abomination. Yet Israel gets away with its actions with little more than slap-on-the-wrist statements. Many countries believe the world will appreciate the recent raft of decisions to recognise Palestine by many nations as punishment against Israel’s actions toward Palestinians. Those decisions, however, will be engineered by Israel and the U.S. in a manner that dilutes them into belated symbolism until Israel concludes its designs for its version of the future of Palestinians.
Nigeria could – if it were not so poorly led and unaware of its potential – make a stronger case for restraint against Israeli excesses in the Middle East and the U.S.’s domineering role in global affairs. It has the potential to represent Africa and the Black race on the Security Council with veto power, but it lacks the confidence and credibility to lead in that direction. That potential remains a threat, and those who seek to place upon it the same label of genocide which Israel now bears know this. A Nigeria labelled by the U.S. as engaging in genocide will bleed credibility in a world substantially designed by U.S. standards. The term genocide itself would be watered down, so it does not offend in its impact when applied against Israel.
Nigeria’s potential to play a more decisive role in global affairs would be severely damaged. Its internal capacity to rally its two major faiths – a vital requirement to rediscover its mission, rebuild, and assume a place as a united, developed African nation – would also be gravely undermined. The U.S. government has many sources of information that tell it there is no genocide against Christians in Nigeria. If it acts in reaction to this contrived falsehood, it cannot be because it has evidence that thousands of Christians are being systematically killed for their faith. It would be an action designed to weaken Nigeria and compound its already substantial self-inflicted weaknesses. These include rampant threats from multiple sources against all citizens, including insurgents and bandits who shout ‘Allahu Akbar’ as they kill, rob, and rape Muslim and Christian victims without discrimination. In many cases, Christian criminals kill Christians, the same way Muslim criminals kill Muslims.
The Nigerian government has made some effort to challenge this emerging smear campaign designed to worsen the country’s problems. This, however, is not enough. Whatever it is that has informed President Tinubu’s decision not to appoint Ambassadors and Heads of Missions since his swearing-in, he should know it has damaged Nigeria very badly. He must appoint Ambassadors immediately, at least to countries like the US and others with the potential to assist or harm our interests, as well as the UN. Nigerians are dying and running from criminals like never before. Only the government of Nigeria can stop this, and it must treat ending these threats as its single most important responsibility. Nigerian Christian clergy have a duty to speak up and denounce the falsehood that there is genocide against Christians in Nigeria. The U.S. will not step in and fight for over 100 million Christians if its contribution to our crises descends even lower than it currently is. Muslim and Christian leaders should improve their search for common ground and speak for both Muslims and Christians, all of whom are victims of criminals in all parts of Nigeria. Nigerians need to be aware of threats to our future as a free, secure, and united people, many of which come from outside our country.