The Muslim Rights Concern has launched a scathing attack on the Christian Association of Nigeria, accusing the umbrella Christian body of disloyalty to President Bola Tinubu following the United States’ controversial designation of Nigeria as a country of particular concern over alleged religious persecution.
Professor Ishaq Akintola, who founded and heads the Islamic rights organization, alleged that certain Christian leaders had worked behind the scenes to damage Nigeria’s international reputation by sending what he described as false petitions to American authorities claiming Christians were being systematically killed.
The accusations come just days after US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that Nigeria would be placed back on Washington’s list of countries where religious freedom violations are of particular concern, a designation that could trigger sanctions and other punitive measures against Africa’s most populous nation.
According to MURIC, the designation was secured through deliberate misrepresentation of Nigeria’s security situation by Christian leaders who petitioned the US Congress with claims that only Christians were being targeted by terrorists in the country.
Akintola expressed particular disappointment that CAN, rather than refuting these narratives, chose instead to amplify them. “It will be recalled that certain Christian leaders had written frivolous petitions to the US Congress claiming that Christians were the only ones being killed by terrorists in Nigeria. Instead of debunking this false and misleading narrative, the Christian Association of Nigeria simply amplified it,” the MURIC statement read.
The Islamic rights group argued that the American designation represents a complete misrepresentation of the actual situation in Nigeria, where violence affects citizens of all faiths. MURIC maintained that despite the Nigerian government’s vehement denial of any Christian genocide, the Trump administration proceeded with the controversial label based on information supplied by Nigerian Christian leaders.
What particularly galls MURIC is what the organization views as ingratitude on the part of Christian leaders, given President Tinubu’s appointment record. Akintola pointed to figures showing that 62 percent of all federal appointments under the current administration have gone to Christians, a statistic he claims was confirmed by the President himself.
“CAN’s action is a stab in the back in view of President Tinubu’s preference of Christians in appointments, favours and privileges over and above his Muslim brethren,” MURIC stated, describing the alleged betrayal as particularly painful given the administration’s generosity toward the Christian community.
The group went further, claiming that First Lady Senator Remi Tinubu had been “even more generous to them than Father Christmas” in extending benefits to Christians. Against this backdrop of what MURIC characterizes as extraordinary goodwill, the organization expressed shock that Nigerian Christians would take their grievances to Washington.
“In spite of all that was done for Nigerian Christians by this administration, they still deemed it fit to take Nigeria to the enabler of Gaza genocide,” the statement continued, making reference to US support for Israel’s military operations in Palestinian territories.
MURIC branded the actions of those behind the American petitions as the “Mother of all Betrayals,” insisting that President Tinubu did not deserve such treatment after his administration’s record of inclusivity and generosity toward Christians.
While acknowledging that the United States may be pursuing its own foreign policy objectives, Akintola placed ultimate responsibility for the damaging designation on Nigerian Christians who he claims supplied misleading information to American officials.
“President Tinubu does not deserve this. It is the Mother of all Betrayals, and we denounce those behind the report in the strongest terms,” the MURIC leader declared.
The accusations add another layer of complexity to an already tense situation, threatening to inflame religious tensions domestically even as the Nigerian government attempts to manage the diplomatic fallout from Washington’s designation. By framing the American action as resulting from Christian disloyalty rather than legitimate security concerns, MURIC’s statement risks deepening divisions along religious lines within the country.
The Christian Association of Nigeria has not yet responded publicly to MURIC’s allegations at the time of this report.
