FG replies US senators on Christian persecution claim

Post created on 12:42 pm

The Federal Government, on Monday, condemned the call by five United States Republican Senators asking for the re-designation of Nigeria as a country of particular concern because of alleged persecution of Christians.

The senators, who made the call in a letter to the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, also alleged violation of freedom of Christians’ rights to practice their religion in Nigeria.

Responding to the allegation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in London, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the call was based on a false premise and misunderstanding of what was going on in the country.

NAN reports that the minister is in London for engagements with international media as well as some relevant Non-Governmental Organisations.

Mohammed noted that the  Constitution of Nigeria guarantees the right of anybody to practice his or her faith without molestation and the government has always safeguarded the constitutional provision jealously.

He said most commentators who were not well versed in the politics and happenings in Nigeria took criminalities and communal clashes as issues of religious persecution.

According to the minister, the only known group that targets Christians is the Islamic State’s West Africa Province.

He, however, said that the Federal Government had mounted large-scale military operations to wipe out the criminals and it was yielding results.

The minister alleged that some NGOs were also feeding the international community with wrong information to get funds from donors.

Mohammed reiterated that the two major religions in Nigeria, Islam, and Christianity, were also collaborating to find a solution to the crisis and bring peace and harmony.

He gave the example of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council, which is working to foster unity and better understanding between the Christian and Islamic faiths.

The minister solicited support from multilateral organizations and foreign countries in tackling the challenges of insecurity.

[NAN]