Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, on Wednesday, dismissed claims of religious genocide in the state, countering assertions reportedly raised by some United States officials pushing for Nigeria’s designation as a Country of Particular Concern.
Speaking at a consultative forum on the protection of Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, and Forcibly Displaced Persons, FDPs, organised by the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, in Abuja, Alia said reports suggesting religious or ethnic cleansing in Benue were inaccurate.
News360 Info reports that the comments come amid increased international scrutiny over allegations of religious persecution and targeted attacks on Christians in the country.
Recall that US President Donald Donald had threatened possible military action against Nigeria following allegations of Christian genocide in the country.
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“In my state of Benue, we don’t have any religious, any ethnic, any racial, any national or state genocide. We don’t have that,” the governor said.
He acknowledged security challenges in the state but stressed they do not meet the United Nations’ definition of genocide.
Alia, a Catholic priest before venturing into politics, also rejected claims that jihadist campaigns were underway in any part of Nigeria, despite the known ambitions of Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, to impose Islamic rule based on extremist interpretations of the Quran.
“We do not have any jihad in Nigeria,” he said, adding: “If there were any, particularly in my state or any part of Nigeria, I would have been the first to speak out.”
