The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has stated that the lives of Muslims in Nigeria also matter, responding to comments by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on alleged persecution of Christians in the country.
Onanuga made the remark on Saturday in reaction to Rubio’s post on X (formerly Twitter)concerning reports of violence against Christians in Nigeria.
Rubio had cited what he described as the “ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians by radical Islamists and Fulani militias,” calling it “tragic and unacceptable.”
He also reaffirmed the United States’ readiness to act, referencing the previous Trump administration’s designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over religious freedom violations.
Responding in the comment section, Onanuga countered Rubio’s claim, writing, “Secretary Rubio, Muslim lives matter too.”
He dismissed the allegations of mass killings of Christians as “a gross exaggeration of the Nigerian situation,” noting that while there are security challenges in parts of the country, the attacks are not religiously motivated.
“What we have are sporadic attacks on some villages by bandits and terrorists, and these attacks are not targeted at any particular religion,” Onanuga said. “Christians, Muslims, churches, and mosques are all attacked randomly.”
He urged the United States to provide military assistance to Nigeria in combating violent extremists rather than labeling the country as a “nation of particular concern.”
