The Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, has slammed United States President, Donald Trump, for describing Nigeria as a disgraced country.
This is just as the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) and the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria also criticised Trump for threatening the sovereignty of Nigeria.
While NEF denounced what it called a ‘dangerous pattern of foreign interference’, Miyetti Allah said it was outraged by attempts to link the association to terrorism and religious extremism.
Trump had, in a recent White House briefing, threatened to ‘take decisive action’ if the killing of Christians continued in Nigeria.
Jibrin condemned Trump’s military threat, describing his statement as ‘un-American’ and ‘a violation of international law’.
Speaking in a viral video which trended on Friday, the Deputy Senate President said, ‘But for now, for the president of the United States to come in and say, “Oh, you are doing this and we are going to attack you, and Nigeria is a disgraced country” — this is quite unacceptable’.
‘We feel that he should understand, then retract that statement and apologise to Nigeria’.
He maintained that the American leader’s utterances breached diplomatic decorum and contravened established international law.
‘It’s against international law. Whatever you feel about our country, follow the legal route. Go to the United Nations, get a resolution there, and then anything can come later. To bypass that route is quite unacceptable. It’s un-American’, he stated.
Jibrin, who spoke passionately before a gathering that applauded him, said Nigeria would not be intimidated by Trump’s threats.
‘We are not scared to say the truth. We are not scared of telling Trump the truth. If he were here, I would tell him he has gone against international law and that the route he’s taking is not the best one to take’, he added.
Also speaking to Saturday PUNCH, the NEF spokesperson, Prof. Abubakar Jiddere, warned that northern leaders and the people of the region would not tolerate any form of external meddling in the country’s affairs under the pretext of fighting insecurity.
‘Nigeria is not an appendage of America. Donald Trump is violating international treaties of the United Nations on the principle of non-interference in the domestic affairs of other countries. And we here in the North are not going to tolerate that’, Jiddere said.
He accused the United States of creating instability in several countries it claimed to have helped, citing Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Afghanistan as examples where American intervention caused chaos and suffering.
According to him, Washington’s interest in Nigeria is not humanitarian but economic.
The NEF spokesman maintained that Nigeria remained a sovereign country capable of handling its internal challenges.
He stressed that while international support was welcome, such cooperation must respect the nation’s independence and constitution.
He dismissed claims of genocide against Christians as ‘false narratives aimed at destabilising the country’.
MACBAN also faulted the resolution of the US House of Representatives calling for sanctions against the group for alleged violations of religious freedom.
Describing the allegations as ‘baseless and malicious’, the National President of MACBAN, Alhaji Baba Othman-Ngelzarma, said the association was concerned that its name was being dragged into what he called a politically motivated campaign.
‘This is a very serious allegation coming from the US Congress. We are surprised to be included in such an allegation’, he told Saturday PUNCH.
The MACBAN leader said the group was already compiling documents to defend its position before the appropriate authorities.
Othman-Ngelzarma insisted that Miyetti Allah was a legitimate, law-abiding body representing pastoralists across Nigeria and had no link with any criminal group.
US driven by economic interests—AYCC
Meanwhile, the Arewa Youth Consultative Council (AYCC) has insisted that Trump’s threat is driven by economic interests rather than concerns about religious freedom.
Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the AYCC National President, Zaid Ayuba Ayuba, said the North does not see the threat as genuine, suggesting it is more connected to Nigeria’s natural resources and its growing relationships with other global powers.
‘We believe this threat must have something to do with the economic base. This threat must have something to do with America’s interest in Nigerian natural resources and the relationship between Nigeria and other powers’, Ayuba said.
He noted that while the US had accused Nigeria of religious persecution, such allegations were often used as excuses to pursue deeper political or economic motives in other nations.
‘One thing we are confident about is that the threat of this invasion is not really about religious genocide. Everyone in the world can attest to this’, he said.
The Arewa youth leader called on the Federal Government to respond swiftly through diplomatic channels, including involving former heads of state and diplomats.
He warned that any US invasion would not only destabilise the region but also bring unnecessary suffering to innocent citizens.
‘The United States has a history that once they invade a country, there is no way they will leave until they get what they are looking for. And that means the lives of ordinary Nigerians who have nothing to do with the differences between the government of Nigeria and the United States will be the ones that will feel it’, Ayuba said.
