I have never been as sad to be Nigerian as I have been over the last few days. That Trump had the temerity to issue that threat should be a source of shame and a wake-up call to Nigerians and Africans. Two years ago, I think, I was arguing with a friend about Nigeria’s defence capability. What do you mean the Navy has no submarine, destroyer or frigate, the Air Force has no world-class fighter jet, AEW&C or a standard anti-air capability, and the Army’s tanks are more outdated than a conservative Yorùbá man’s train of thought?
Her argument then was that Nigerians have no existential or significant threat around them. What do you mean? Nigeria is the most populous black country in the world at a time when the unipolar world is becoming multipolar. A time where technological and warfare strength is based on rare minerals that the African continent has in abundance, and the ease of travel means that any political instability in our neighbouring countries will eventually affect us. What do you mean we have no existential threat? As of today, if Nigeria – and indeed much of Africa – were to magically disappear from the face of the world, the world would not feel a thing! Perhaps oil prices would surge for a weekend, but that would only be till OPEC can meet and mandate member states to pick up the slack in production. That sort of existence is dangerous in a world where Trump is leading the US to abandon soft power in exchange for hard power.
For the safety and existence of 250 million people to rest on the humanity and decency of some suited capitalist maniacs in DC is a very dangerous gamble. Hopefully, this Trump threat has opened the eyes of the Nigerian leaders to that reality. But I give them too much credit – those fools won’t know an existential threat if it held a gun against their temples.
Back to the subject matter, the issue of Trump’s threat being illegal under international law is as meaningless as an incel’s abstinence. Genocide and genocide abetting are illegal as well, and look at Gaza.
Is there a Christian genocide in Nigeria? No. Even Trump himself did not use the term ‘genocide’ because his legal team must have warned him about that. Is there a mass killing of Christians in Nigeria? Definitely. Yes. Whether the same goes for Muslim deaths is not the subject today. Hundreds of people have been killed in Nigeria and the government does not care. Before Trump’s post, the ruling party wouldn’t even acknowledge that thousands of people were dying! When people from the Middle Belt and the North Central complained, the political dogs accused them of attacking the President politically. Today, these same dogs are screaming that both Muslims and Christians are being killed. Wow, I thought the killings were political propaganda.
The world today, as it always has, thrives on strength. Power dictates what is true and what is false. Trump knows there is no genocide. Randy Fine knows there is no genocide. Pete Hegseth knows there is no genocide. Walid Phares knows too. But truth is as power says it is. If the US bombs Nigeria today, no one will argue that there is no genocide.
If you live in Ekiti, Lagos, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, etc where there is still relative peace, it is easy to quote geopolitics and say stuff about foreign domination and independence and resource theft and sovereignty. You are not the one waking up to the sound of gunshots and the final screams of your loved ones. You are not the one watching soldiers stay idle while your entire community are hunted, shot and buried. You have no right to lecture someone who watched his whole family being killed without the President addressing anything. Over 200 people died in Benue in a single day and the President didn’t say anything about it. He wouldn’t have gone if people didn’t clamour for him to go. Even after that, he still didn’t visit the tragic site. He visited a hall in the state capital instead, and the next day, he was cutting ribbons at some phoney show. So, understand it when the real victims of this terrorism gladly lay down their heads for US boots to stomp on if it means they will at least get a break from the everyday sound of gunshots and smell of gunpowder.
Still, it is noteworthy that the US will enter Nigeria to defend Christians. If the US had any issue with how the present administration is ‘collaborating’ with terrorists, one phone call is enough to end everything – that’s how powerful the US is and how weak Nigeria has been made. Some say it is because of the rare earth mineral in Northern Nigeria. Some say it is because of the oil – since Venezuela has shown that they will put up a fierce fight if Trump puts boots on the ground. And some say it is to upend the Chinese BRI as they did during Jonathan’s time. Whatever the real reason is, it is dangerous to clamour for US interference in our country. If they would only steal the resources and leave, excellent. It doesn’t benefit the average Nigerian anyway. However, the US doesn’t just steal things. The US destroys everything around what they are trying to steal. It’s not their country and they act like it. You could say, “Anything at all is better than what Tinubu is showing us.” Well, we said the same in 2015 during Jonathan’s administration. Buhari and Tinubu are enough lessons that things can get worse when people who don’t care are at the helm of affairs.
Finally, I believe there is a mass killing of Christians in Nigeria, but not a genocide. Please check the definition of genocide online (the liars and thieves who are deliberately using that term know why they are using that term unofficially and the official people who didn’t use the term know why they didn’t use the term). I believe the Nigerian government has done nothing to curtail these killings. In fact, their actions have shown that they don’t care about these killings. Even now, they are more concerned with Trump’s threats and insults than they are about their incompetence in handling the massacres.
However, I don’t believe in the US as a saviour. It will get worse if the US comes in. Nigerians need to gather their balls and demand a change. Like I told another friend last year, the people who are getting killed know the way to Abuja. Sleep outside a main road in Abuja for two weeks and see if there is no change. “The soldiers will shoot us to clear the road.” One, no, they won’t. Two, either soldiers shoot you or terrorists shoot you, you’ll be too dead to care. God has given every person the power to liberate themself. More people, more power. You can either take matters into your hands or you can wait for a saviour who has their own agenda to save you. You can either fight or you can surrender. Ask any military age male in Libya about the consequences of surrender, or ask any ‘innocent’ person in Iraq – if you can find them.
