Yemi Obafemi
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has responded to remarks by former U.S. President Donald Trump, who recently alleged that Christians in Nigeria are facing genocide and threatened possible U.S. military intervention if the killings are not stopped.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Keyamo urged the U.S. government to seek a deeper understanding of Nigeria’s security situation and to collaborate with the Nigerian government in addressing terrorism rather than issuing threats.
“President Trump, the Nigerian people ask for deep and sincere understanding from your government at this point; we ask for support and cooperation to confront this decades-old menace of terrorism. We ask for collaboration and open dialogue. We urge your government to broaden its sources of information to get a balanced view of the happenings in Nigeria,” the statement read in part.
Keyamo emphasized that the insecurity challenges in Nigeria over the years have affected people of all faiths, insisting that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration does not protect one religious group over another.
Recounting his human rights background, Keyamo noted that he had been honoured in Washington with the Global Human Rights Award in 2017 by the United States Global Leadership Council for his advocacy on behalf of the downtrodden.
“I was born and raised as a Christian in Nigeria. Because of my strong Christian background and ethical pedigree, it would have been unconscionable for me to serve in a government if there were any truth to claims that Christians are being specifically targeted in Nigeria for persecution or killings on account of their faith. It is simply not true,” he stated.
The minister described the security challenges in Nigeria as a result of long-standing terrorism and banditry, perpetrated by groups such as Boko Haram, herdsmen, and cattle rustlers, all of which predate the Tinubu administration.
Keyamo also highlighted that many of Nigeria’s current security chiefs are Christians, dismissing the notion of a state-sanctioned bias against the Christian community.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, though a Muslim, is a known moderate. His wife is a pastor of one of the biggest Pentecostal churches in Nigeria, and most of his children are practising Christians. He would be the last person to adopt or condone the killing of Christians,” he said.
He reaffirmed that Nigeria remains a secular state whose constitution guarantees freedom of religion, allowing for peaceful coexistence among Muslims, Christians, and adherents of traditional African faiths.
Concluding his message, Keyamo said that both ruling and opposition leaders in Nigeria agree on one point that there is no targeted killing of Christians in the country.
“Ordinarily, opposition politicians will oppose the government of the day. But on this matter, President Trump, you would have observed that leaders of the opposition parties in Nigeria are united on one point: there is no TARGETED killing of Christians in Nigeria.”
