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United States lawmaker, Riley Moore, has accused the Federal Government of failing to justify the billions of dollars in military assistance it has received from Washington, alleging continued killings of Christians in the country.
Moore, who heads the investigative committee set up by US President Donald Trump to probe alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria, made the remarks during an interview on The Dinesh D’Souza Show on Thursday night.
“My brothers and sisters in Christ are murdered for practising their faith and belief in our Lord Jesus Christ,” Moore said, condemning what he described as years of silence from both the Nigerian authorities and the international community.
He warned that the ongoing violence could have far-reaching consequences if left unchecked.
“If we don’t address this, if we don’t do something about this, and some terrorists take hold in Nigeria, I promise you, we would have to address it one way or the other.
“What I would like to do is address it cooperatively with Nigerians, and hopefully there would be,” he said.
The lawmaker criticised the Federal Government for what he called a lack of urgency in protecting Christians despite extensive US support.
“I think there is a potential very quickly to partner, and I am hoping they would partner with the US government to address this because we have been providing them billions of billions of dollars worth of security assistance,
“They have been paying for that, but they were also granted security assistance from the United States of America — training and equipment — for them to address this issue, and it has gone on unresolved, and they are not prioritising the protection of the Christians,” he explained.
Moore lamented that the violence has continued “under the radar” for too long.
“The pieces are in place to address this; it has been flying under the radar, and nobody has cared about this for a very long time.
“But if we are not going to stand up for this, for the very values we have as Christians — and I am not talking of nation building, democracy — we are talking about going on to protect Christians from murder,” the lawmaker noted.
He described the situation as a “forgotten genocide” and called for both Nigeria and its allies to take immediate, concrete action.
Earlier, Moore pledged to submit a report to Trump soon, writing, “Thank you, President Trump, for your incredible leadership in defending persecuted Christians, especially in Nigeria. Your bold and decisive action to protect our brothers and sisters in Christ will save thousands of lives. I am on it and will have more for you soon.”
Trump had reiterated his position that Nigeria faces what he called a crisis of religious persecution.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria; thousands and thousands of Christians are being killed, and radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter.
“I am hereby making Nigeria a country of particular concern, that is a legal definition,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Trump said he had instructed US lawmakers to act swiftly. He added that the United States “cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria and other countries,” warning that Washington could intervene militarily if the killings continue.
The Federal Government has, however, rejected the characterisation, denying that the violence amounts to genocide. Officials insist that the country’s security challenges affect both Christians and Muslims and that Nigeria’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion for all citizens.
