“I’m a Christian; My Father Is a Pastor — How Can Anyone Say Christians Are Being Killed?” — Wike

Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike has dismissed allegations that Christians are being targeted and killed in Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, describing the claims as politically driven.

Speaking on Channels Television’s *Politics Today* on Monday, Wike said the accusation of a Christian genocide was “politics taken too far,” stressing that he found it personally offensive as a Christian.

“I am a Christian. My father is a pastor; my family are all Christians. It’s an indictment on my person as a Christian that in a government I’m serving, anyone will allege that we are supporting genocide or the killing of Christians. This is politics taken too far,” he said.

He pointed out that several key figures in the current administration, including the Inspector-General of Police, the Director-General of the Department of State Services, and the Chief of Defence Staff, are all Christians. “Tell me how any right-thinking person will think we would sit in a government and support the killing of our own people?” he asked.

When asked if he believed the opposition was responsible for spreading the narrative, Wike said it was “very obvious.” He argued that the weakening of opposition parties had pushed them to resort to divisive tactics.

“The problem we have today is that the opposition has collapsed. They know no party is ready to challenge the president’s return to power. So they’re trying to create division by bringing up issues like this,” Wike said.

He added that no Nigerian leader would ever take pleasure in the loss of lives, regardless of region or religion.

His remarks followed comments by US President Donald Trump, who over the weekend threatened military action against Nigeria over alleged attacks on Christians.

On his Truth Social platform, Trump said he had instructed the Pentagon to prepare a “possible plan of attack,” claiming Christianity faces an “existential threat” in Nigeria. He warned that if Nigeria failed to stop the killings, “the attack will be fast, vicious, and sweet — just like the terrorist thugs attack our cherished Christians.”

Trump repeated the threat on Sunday after the Nigerian presidency called for diplomatic talks to resolve the matter. When asked whether he was considering air strikes or troop deployment, Trump said, “Could be. I mean, a lot of things—I envisage a lot of things.”

Reacting to Trump’s comments, Wike said he believed the US president had been misinformed. “There could be some misinformation or distortion. It’s unfortunate,” he said.