No, Mr. President: An Open Letter to Donald J. Trump
By Bashir Yahuza Malumfashi
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Your Excellency, President Donald J. Trump, I write this letter on behalf of millions of patriotic Nigerians who care deeply about the future of their country and its relationship with the United States of America.
We have heard your statements claiming that Christians are being persecuted and killed in Nigeria, and that the country has been placed under U.S. watch. These remarks troubled us because they present a misleading picture of the true situation in Nigeria.
Mr. President, it is not true that Nigeria’s biggest problem is a conflict between Christians and Muslims. In most parts of the country, Muslims and Christians live peacefully together, do business together, intermarry, and share a common destiny. Nigeria’s crisis is not religious, it is a crisis of leadership, caused by corrupt and ineffective leaders who have failed us as good citizens.
Our leaders have failed to protect lives and property. They divert the nation’s resources into their private pockets, leaving the masses in deep poverty, ignorance, hunger and disease. This is the real tragedy we face, not a war between religions but the absence of honest, just and compassionate leadership.
Regarding insecurity, Boko Haram and armed bandits in northern Nigeria have killed thousands and most of their victims are Muslims in the North-East, North-Central, and North-West regions. They attack mosques, markets, schools and unprotected villages. In truth, Muslims have suffered more casualties than Christians, contrary to what is often reported in foreign media.
Christians have also been affected by this violence and even as that, not because they are being targeted simply for their faith but because the violence stems from insecurity, poverty, and government failure. To describe this situation only as “Christians being killed” is misleading and risks fueling hatred and division.
The roots of terrorism and violence in Nigeria lie in unemployment, corruption, lack of education and government neglect, not religious difference. Ordinary citizens are more concerned about hunger, insecurity and injustice than about the faith of their neighbours.
Mr. President, what Nigerians need from the United States is not judgment or condemnation but support. We need meaningful support to strengthen democracy, promote good governance, empower honest leaders and develop the economy. That is the kind of partnership that can bring peace and prosperity to our country and the world.
Therefore, we call on the United States to use its influence to encourage our leaders to govern with honesty and justice and that’s by ensuring credible elections, fighting corruption, protecting human rights and opening economic opportunities for all citizens, not just a privileged few. With good leadership, neither religion nor ethnicity will threaten our unity.
Nigeria is a nation blessed with immense resources, be it oil, agriculture and vibrant, intelligent people. What we clamour for is a partnership based on truth and mutual understanding, not on misinformation that divides us. The world will be a safer place if great nations like the United States stand for fairness, not division.
On a final note, Mr. President, we appeal to you to listen to the voices of ordinary Nigerians not just to the political elite or some misguided clerics. You’ve to be in the know that our desire is for peace, progress and unity among all religious and ethnic groups in Nigeria and to a larger extent Africa and the world over. May Allah grant you wisdom and the ability to pursue justice and fairness across the world.
I come in peace! Thank you for your time and attention to this letter.
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Malam Yahuza Malumfashi, a bilingual writer/poet is the publisher of online magazine – Taskar Gizago
