Onanuga Dismisses Reports of Christian Killings in Nigeria.

Onanuga.

Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has dismissed claims suggesting that thousands of Christians are being killed in Nigeria, describing such reports as a gross exaggeration.

Onanuga’s statement followed a post made on Saturday by the United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who alleged that radical Islamists and Fulani militias were responsible for the “ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians” in Nigeria.

Rubio had written on X on Friday, “The ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians in Nigeria by radical Islamists and Fulani ethnic militias is both tragic and unacceptable. As @POTUS said, the United States stands ready, willing, and able to act.”

His comment came shortly after the White House declared Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern over alleged violations of religious freedom.

U.S. President Donald Trump, on Friday, announced that Nigeria was being designated a Country of Particular Concern due to alleged genocide against Christians.

Trump claimed that thousands of Christians were being killed in the country by radical Islamists and Fulani militias, describing the situation as “a genocide against believers.”

Responding to Rubio through his official X handle, Onanuga wrote, “Dear Secretary Rubio, there is no ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians in Nigeria. This is a gross exaggeration of the Nigerian situation. What we do have are sporadic attacks on some villages by bandits and terrorists, and the attacks are religiously insensitive. Christians, Muslims, churches, and mosques are attacked randomly.”

He stressed that the insecurity across Nigeria was not driven by religion, pointing out that both Christians and Muslims had suffered from violent attacks nationwide.

“What our country requires from America is military support to fight these violent extremists in some states of our country, not designation as a nation of particular concern,” Onanuga added.

In another reply directed at Rubio, he stated, “Secretary Rubio, Muslim lives matter too.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had previously rejected the designation, calling it misleading and unjust.

In its statement, the government clarified that insecurity in Nigeria was caused by criminal activities and banditry rather than religious persecution, adding that both Muslims and Christians had fallen victim to the violence.

The government also criticised Trump’s description of the situation as a religious genocide, reaffirming that Nigeria remained fully committed to protecting the rights and freedoms of all religious groups.