Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, has taken a swipe at former U.S. President Donald Trump, warning that his threat to “protect Christians in Nigeria” shows a dangerous misunderstanding of the country’s security realities.
Speaking during a live media chat on Sunday, Soludo described Nigeria’s crisis as far more complex than a simple Christian-versus-Muslim conflict.
“People are killing themselvesa Christians killing Christians,” he said. “The people in the bushes are Emmanuel, Peter, John — all Christian names — and they have maimed and killed thousands of our youths. It has nothing to do with religion.”
Soludo noted that while the U.S. can express opinions on international issues, it must respect international law and Nigeria’s sovereignty.
“As a country, America has its own rights to have its own views about what is going on elsewhere,” he said. “But when it comes to what it does, I am sure it must also act within the realm of international law.”
Taking aim at Trump’s comments, Soludo drew a biting comparison: “You had policemen killing some blacks… I remember the #BlackLivesMatter protest, and somebody would say maybe Africa should go and invade America because blacks are being killed? I’m not quite sure.”
He said Nigeria’s response should be one of robust engagement and dialogue, not panic or provocation.
“I think there is a need for deeper conversation,” he said. “It must end in conversation, and I am sure the government of Nigeria will respond very robustly. Nigeria is such a big country, and the government is doing a whole lot to safeguard it.”
The governor, who is seeking re-election next Saturday, also rejected the narrative that the South-East crisis is religiously motivated.
“In this part of the country, we are 95 percent Christian,” he said. “The people in the bushes killing others bear Christian names; it is wider than the categorisation of Christians and Muslims. Nigeria will overcome, and it will end in conversation.”
Trump recently redesignated Nigeria as a “country of particular concern,” threatening to stop U.S. aid and “go into that now disgraced country guns-a-blazing.”
The remark drew global backlash, with some U.S. officials like Pete Hegseth hinting at possible military intervention.
Meanwhile, right-wing lawmakers led by Senator Ted Cruz have sponsored the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025, calling for sanctions against officials accused of enabling “Christian persecution.”
Soludo’s sharp rebuke adds to growing Nigerian outrage over what many describe as Trump’s “colonial arrogance.”
