A US congressional hearing on global religious freedom has criticized the federal government’s reported $9m lobbying contract in Washington.
The congress warned that the deal appeared to be aimed at downplaying serious human rights and religious freedom violations.
The concerns were expressed on Wednesday during a joint hearing of the House Subcommittees on Africa and the Western Hemisphere titled ‘Defending Religious Freedom Around the World.’
The session featured testimony from former US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Sam Brownback, and former chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, Dr. Stephen Schneck.
Chris Smith, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, defended Nigeria’s October 2025 designation as a Country of Particular Concern under the International Religious Freedom Act, calling it “long overdue” in light of years of deadly violence against Christian communities.
Smith stated that he was troubled by efforts to counter that designation through lobbying.
The chairman lamented, “I just want to say to my colleagues that I am deeply concerned that Nigeria has hired the lobbying firm, DCI Group, to the tune of $9m, $750,000 a month.
“And a Nigerian billionaire has entered into a $120,000-a-month contract with Washington-based consulting firm Valcour to influence Congress and the Executive Branch.
“They hire these firms; they come up with their very well-written talking points to say nothing to see here, and unfortunately, these firms are just so good at advocating for their client for religious freedom.”
While Smith saw the CPC designation as important pressure on Nigeria, Ranking Member Sara Jacobs criticized what she saw as an unduly narrow focus on Christian persecution.
Jacobs emphasized that, despite claimed concerns about religious violence, the United States had reduced foreign assistance to Nigeria by hundreds of millions of dollars, including programs to support faith leaders and conflict-affected areas.
She mentioned the end of the Community Initiatives to Promote Peace program, which she claimed had helped reduce violence in certain areas of the country.
“Despite the administration’s apparent interest in addressing conflict and religious tensions in Nigeria, it has cut hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign assistance to Nigeria, including assistance to faith leaders and to communities experiencing violence in the Middle Belt,” Jacobs said.
Jacobs warned against framing the crisis in purely religious terms, saying, “The violence in Nigeria is complex, affecting both Christians and Muslims, and the drivers of this violence are multifaceted and cannot be reduced to a single framing.”
She added that “oversimplistic narratives can further inflame religious tensions in communities.”
The lawmaker also questioned the efficacy of recent US military strikes in Sokoto State, saying, “And yet, it is clear that President Trump only cares about Christians in Nigeria, and his only real action to address this problem, military strikes over Christmas, has not even done anything to materially help those communities.
Ex-USCIRF chair Schneck agreed, stating that the cost of the strikes likely exceeded funds previously dedicated to ecumenical and humanitarian programs, and cautioning that military intervention could encourage terrorist groups.
“In fact, it occurs to me that the cost of the Tomahawk missiles that were sent probably exceeded the amount of money that had previously been going to Nigeria to improve interfaith relations and provide humanitarian assistance,” he said.
“So, it is very concerning to me. In fact, I suspect, really, that strikes like that, to the extent that they have any effect at all, would likely drive some of these more militant organizations together in greater unity and perhaps mobilize them in the future. So I think that the strike was a mistake,” Schneck added.
In his testimony on the broader crisis, the ex-chair of USCIRF described Nigeria’s challenges as a combination of terrorism by Boko Haram and ISWAP, farmer-herder conflicts, banditry, organized crime, mass displacement, and what he called “a corrupt and, frankly, a failing government” incapable of providing basic security and justice.
Lawmakers also questioned if the CPC designation was adequate on its own. Rep. Jefferson Shreve questioned its efficacy, prompting Brownback to argue that the label should be accompanied by sanctions and other tangible actions.
“Until you put some bite into it, most of these dictators are just going to thumb their nose at you,” Brownback said, advocating “Magnitsky sanctions” and targeted economic penalties.
The ex-chair of USCIRF shared this viewpoint, describing CPC listings as essentially “name and shame” with no real effects.
Although Rep. Bill Huizenga stated that recent US action had helped refocus “attention on Nigeria,” Brownback expressed deep mistrust of the Federal Government, accusing it of abandoning power-sharing traditions and failing to protect vulnerable communities.
“This government has not given us any reason to trust them,” Brownback said, underscoring the skepticism that framed the hearing and the sharp rebuke of Nigeria’s multimillion-dollar lobbying push.
US President Donald Trump has often stated that Christians in Nigeria are facing genocide and has threatened military action.
However, the Federal Government denied those allegations, claiming that while the country suffers major security issues, there is no genocide.
Despite the tensions, the US Africa Command, in collaboration with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, launched airstrikes on terrorist targets in Sokoto State on December 25.
In January, records revealed that FG had signed a $9 million contract with the US-based lobbying company DCI Group to explain Nigeria’s efforts to protect Christians to the US government.
According to filings with the US Department of Justice, Kaduna-based Aster Legal retained DCI Group on behalf of Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Advisor.
The deal was signed on December 17, 2025.
Separately, documents obtained by AFP earlier this month revealed that billionaire Matthew Tonlagha signed a $120,000-per-month contract with US lobbying firm Valcour to lobby US media, Congress, and the Trump administration for six months “for the purpose of strengthening the bilateral relationship between the US and Nigeria.”
The contract was published on a US government website where lobbyists must register their affiliations to foreign governments.
Valcour was formed in 2023 by Matt Mowers, a former State Department aide during Trump’s inaugural term.
Tonlagha is the vice president of Tantita Security Services, which protects oil infrastructure and is owned by Oweizidei Ekpemupolo, a prominent former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta.
