Former Kaduna Central Senator Shehu Sani has sternly rebuked the threat by United States President Donald Trump to take military action against Nigeria.
The former lawmaker reiterated Nigeria’s claim to sovereignty and dignity and characterized the American leader’s comments as inappropriate meddling.
Sani said, “One day we will all be gone,” in a statement posted on his X page on Monday. Future generations, including our children and grandchildren, will read what we publish and inquire about our positions on the pressing and contentious issues of our day.
“I want history to record me among those who outrightly opposed, rejected, and unreservedly condemned any act of Mr. Trump’s foreign military aggression against my country under any guise, disguise, or excuse.”
Nigeria is “not a ‘disgraced country’ and will never be a ‘disgraced country,'” he emphasized.
“Anyone who is proud of his mother, who gave birth to him after months of labor in his ancestral land, will not accept his land being called ‘disgraced,'” the politician and activist continued.
Sani emphasized that we are not a country that has ever colonized, enslaved, or invaded any country or countries and dropped bombs and killed millions of people and plundered their resources, rejecting analogies to countries with a history of occupation, colonization, or bombing campaigns. We cannot be deemed “disgraced” in the absence of such a record versus other nations.
Sani welcomed “any support and assistance to our security forces that will help in crushing and annihilating terrorists in our country,” admitting that Nigeria has had significant security issues over the past 15 years.
He did, however, insist that the nation’s sovereignty be respected.
“Nigeria is the only country we can live in without a visa permit because it is ours,” he said, urging the Nigerian government to intensify efforts to save lives and secure the country.
“As a Democrat, I respect but will never share the opinion of those who think otherwise and want history to register them as supporters of foreign aggression,” he said in closing, restating his democratic credentials.
In an attempt to halt what his administration called the “killing of Christians in very large numbers,” President Trump suggested that the U.S. military might be sent in.
His comments came after Nigeria was re-designated as a “Country of Particular Concern” due to suspected religious freedom violations.
Sani responded to this by accusing the United States and its president of acting based on false information.
He denounced what he called “anarchists, lackeys, and apprentices of neocolonialism” for misrepresenting Nigerian conflicts as religious persecution and deceiving world leaders.
He maintained that rather than one religion oppressing another, Nigeria’s security issues stem from terrorism, banditry, and intercommunal strife that affect Nigerians of all faiths.
“Terrorists and bandits in Nigeria kill and kidnap their victims irrespective of their religious beliefs. The records have been self-evident in the last 15 years,” he said.
Sani said that it is “technically impossible for one faith to persecute another” due to Nigeria’s religious makeup, which is roughly half Christian and half Muslim.
He went on, “Looking at the Muslim/Christian ratio in Nigeria, it’s technically impossible for one faith to persecute another. Nigeria is a lion and tiger situation, not a lion and a zebra configuration.”
Regarding the aid and intervention issue, the former senator made it very plain that while Nigeria is open to helpful assistance, it will not put up with the idea of foreign military bases, foreign troops on the ground, or outside forces operating under the guise of “saving” Nigeria.
Sani had previously warned against accommodating foreign military forces on Nigerian soil, thus advising the government to rely on the country’s own armed services.
