Olayiwola Matthew
The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has rejected United States President Donald Trump’s threat of military intervention in Nigeria, urging him instead to support President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to address the country’s worsening security situation.
The PFN president, Bishop Wale Oke, during an interview on Channels Television on Thursday, emphasised that Nigerians want peace, justice, and international cooperation to tackle terrorism and violence, not external aggression.
He said, “Whatever needs to be done should be done to stop the killings. The life of every Nigerian is precious, and the targeted attacks against the church should stop. If the President [Bola Tinubu] wants to ask for training in counter-terrorism, or wherever they know that America has expertise, let them ask for it.
“For us, we do not want an American invasion of Nigeria. We want Donald Trump to work with our President and to hold our President accountable to stop the targeted killing and kidnapping of our members. That is what we want.”
Urging the Nigerian government to end killings across the country, Oke said, “We don’t want revenge, like I said. But we want an end to killings. We want every Nigerian, whether Muslims or Christians, to be able to live freely, work freely, and practice their religion freely anywhere in Nigeria.”
The PFN’s statement comes after Trump threatened military action in Nigeria over what he described as the mass slaughter of Christians. On his Truth Social platform, the former US leader asked Nigerian authorities to address the rising attacks, declaring Nigeria a “country of particular concern.”
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote.
“I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘country of particular concern.’ But that is the least of it. When Christians, or any such group, are slaughtered like is happening in Nigeria (3,100 versus 4,476 Worldwide), something must be done!”
A day later, Trump directed the US Department of War to “prepare for possible action” in Nigeria.
He added, “If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!”
Trump’s statements sparked a mix of international concern and domestic pushback. The Federal Government quickly dismissed the claims of Christian genocide as false, baseless, and divisive.
“Portraying Nigeria’s security challenges as a targeted campaign against a single religious group is inaccurate and harmful,” said the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.