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

Onanuga was reacting on Saturday to a post 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 said 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.”

Rubio’s comment followed the White House’s announcement designating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over alleged religious freedom violations.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday, announced Nigeria’s designation as a Country of Particular Concern over alleged genocide against Christians.

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

Responding to Rubio via 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 maintained that insecurity in Nigeria is not driven by religion, stressing that both faith communities have suffered from violent attacks across the country.

“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 to Rubio, Onanuga said: “Secretary Rubio, Muslim lives matter too.”

The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had earlier rejected the designation, describing it as misleading and unfair.

In its response, the government maintained that insecurity in Nigeria is driven by criminality and banditry rather than religious persecution, stressing that both Christians and Muslims have been victims of attacks.

The government also faulted Trump’s characterisation of the violence as a religious genocide, insisting that Nigeria remains committed to protecting the rights and freedoms of all faiths. (The PUNCH)