Governor Soludo dismisses religious angle to Southeast violence
Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, has dismissed claims that insecurity in Nigeria’s Southeast is religiously motivated, insisting that the violence is largely driven by internal conflicts among people of the same faith.
Speaking on recent international comments about Nigeria’s security situation, Soludo said while the United States and other countries have a right to express views on global issues, such opinions must be based on facts and respect for international law.
“The role of the Nigerian government in protecting lives and properties needs to be clear,” he said. “America can have its views, but its actions must remain within the realm of international law.”
According to him, the crisis in Eastern Nigeria is not about religion. “People are killing themselves — Christians killing Christians. The people in the bushes are Emmanuel, Peter, John — all Christian names — and they have maimed and killed thousands of our youths. It has nothing to do with religion,” he stated.
Soludo said Nigeria reserves the right to request military or technological assistance from any country to tackle insurgency. “If Nigeria requests any assistance for the military, technology, and hardware, then it is within Nigeria’s call,” he added.
Drawing a parallel with the United States, Soludo referenced the Black Lives Matter protests, saying, “You have policemen killing blacks, but nobody says Africa should invade America because of it. That’s how I see it.”
He called for deeper national dialogue rather than foreign interference, stressing that the Nigerian government is doing a lot to safeguard the country. “Nigeria is such a big country, and the government will respond robustly on behalf of the people,” he said.
Soludo, expressing optimism about the nation’s unity, added, “In this part of the country, we are 95 per cent Christians. The people in the bushes killing others bear Christian names. It’s beyond the categorisation of Christians and Muslims. Nigeria will overcome, and it will end in conversation.”
