Abuja, Nigeria — November 4, 2025 | Dalena Reporters
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed claims of a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, describing the allegation as politically motivated and “a case of politics taken too far.
Speaking on a television programme monitored in Abuja on Monday, Wike accused opposition forces of promoting the narrative to undermine President Bola Tinubu’s administration, suggesting it mirrors the tactics used against former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.
“I am a Nigerian and a full-blooded Christian. My father is a pastor, and my family are all Christians. I serve in this government. It is an indictment on me and my faith for anyone to allege that a government where I serve supports genocide against Christians,” Wike said. “This is politics taken too far.
Wike argued that several key security officials in Nigeria are themselves Christians — pointing to the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the State Security Service, and the Chief of Defence Staff — and said it would be “illogical” to believe such persons would sit idle while Christians were being targeted.
He maintained that President Tinubu — whose wife is a pastor — would never condone religious violence, and emphasised that the government has dedicated significant resources to fighting terrorism and insecurity more than any prior administration.
Responding to questions about whether complacency could amount to complicity, Wike told hosts that terrorism and banditry claim lives across faith groups and ethnicities, and that linking the current violence solely to Christians undercuts the complex nature of Nigeria’s security challenges. “Terrorists are killing Christians, Muslims, and even non-believers,” he said. “When Benue was under attack or when the Chibok girls were kidnapped... Tinubu was not President. So, it’s wrong to link today’s killings to this administration.
Wike argued that opposition elements, recognising their fading relevance ahead of the 2027 elections, have resorted to ethnic-religious narratives to provoke tension and disrupt the governing party’s stability. “The opposition knows no party is currently strong enough to challenge President Tinubu, so they are desperate to create tension. This genocide claim is just a political weapon,” he contended.
He also called on Nigerians and international partners to focus on the facts — urging that the country’s security situation be addressed realistically rather than sensationalised for partisan gain. “I support any country genuinely willing to help Nigeria fight terrorism, but no one should use our internal challenges for politics. This government is not helpless; it’s working and will continue to work to solve the problem,” Wike declared.
As the U.S. and other international actors continue to voice concern over religious-freedom conditions in Nigeria, Wike’s remarks signal a firm domestic push-back against framing the country’s crisis primarily through a religious lens. The stakes are high: with global attention focused on Nigeria’s security and human-rights record, the government appears keen to assert control over the narrative, push for sovereignty-centred diplomacy, and resist what it perceives as external amplification of internal political tactics.