3 weeks ago
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The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has called connected the Federal Government to instrumentality a decisive presumption connected what it described arsenic mendacious and misleading claims of spiritual persecution successful Nigeria, urging acrophobic authorities to place and code the sources of specified narratives.
In a connection signed by its Deputy National Legal Adviser, Imam Haroun Muhammad Eze, connected Friday, the Council said it had observed “the avalanche of refutations by galore agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria, well-meaning Nigerians crossed spiritual divides and the National Assembly of the caller mendacious allegation circulating connected immoderate planetary platforms and the societal media that determination is simply a systematic genocidal run against Christians successful Nigeria.”
The NSCIA commended the Federal Government and different stakeholders who had publically rejected the claims but expressed interest that their responses did not spell acold enough.
It said, “Council wondered wherefore the authorities could not, astatine slightest for once, spell the full hog by calling a spade a spade, by speaking the full truth.”
The Council maintained that insecurity successful Nigeria affects citizens of each faiths and should not beryllium portrayed arsenic targeted astatine immoderate azygous group.
It cited the US State Department’s 2023 Report connected International Religious Freedom, noting that “terrorists, bandits and equipped transgression groups people mosques and churches indiscriminately successful Nigeria.”
The connection added, “In the archetypal fractional of 2025 alone, terrorists and bandits are reported to person killed astatine slightest 2,266 civilians crossed Northern Nigeria, wherever Muslims are predominant, leaving implicit 2 cardinal radical displaced and implicit 7.8 cardinal others successful request of urgent aid.”
It besides referenced findings by the US Commission connected International Religious Freedom 2025 Annual Report, which acknowledged that some Muslims and Christians had been victims of attacks, stressing that the concern “does not instrumentality immoderate pattern.”
NSCIA said its determination to stay restrained successful the look of allegations and misrepresentations was motivated by its committedness to nationalist unity.
“Council wishes to spot connected grounds that its determination to beryllium quiescent successful the look of each the attacks, innuendos and insults being hurled astatine Muslims successful this state is arsenic a effect of the necessity of protecting the firm beingness of this nation,” it stated.
The NSCIA besides referred to a remark by the Director of National Issues and Social Welfare of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), who observed that insecurity affects each Nigerians, saying: “If they unfastened occurrence successful a marketplace, the bullets don’t look for a Christian oregon spare a Muslim oregon adjacent spare a baby.”
Expressing interest astir policies it believed could deepen divisions, the Council drew attraction to a caller circular by the National Insurance Commission (NICON) restricting co-insurance betwixt accepted insurers and Takaful operators.
It stated, “This circular of exclusivity, which intelligibly violates the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA 2025), is intended to further make a disagreement betwixt the Muslims and the non-Muslims successful the country.”
Reaffirming its committedness to bid and coexistence, NSCIA said it “strongly believes successful 1 and indivisible Nigeria, and it shall proceed to enactment to sphere this perfect adjacent successful the look of the top provocation.”
It urged the Federal Government to fortify nationalist connection and guarantee that misinformation susceptible of fuelling spiritual hostility is swiftly addressed done accurate, evidence-based engagement.
The NSCIA’s connection comes amid increasing planetary attraction connected spiritual state successful Nigeria. Western advocacy groups and planetary media outlets person accused Nigerian authorities of failing to support Christians from attacks, allegations which the Federal Government and section spiritual leaders person repeatedly dismissed arsenic exaggerated and politically motivated.
In September, US Senator Ted Cruz introduced S.2747 — the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025, a projected instrumentality seeking to compel the US Secretary of State to database Nigeria arsenic a Country of Particular Concern for alleged breaches of spiritual state and to enforce sanctions connected definite Nigerian officials.
English (US) ·