Cruz Accuses Tinubu Over Nigeria Christian Persecution

A fresh clash has erupted between Washington and Abuja, and this time it is personal. US Senator Ted Cruz says President Bola Tinubu is spending money and time courting American lobbyists instead of confronting the Nigerian Christian persecution crisis head-on.

It is a serious charge, and it lands at a moment when US-Nigeria relations are already tense.

In a statement released Wednesday, Cruz claimed Nigerian officials have chosen a public relations offensive over genuine engagement with American concerns about Nigerian Christian persecution. He accused the government of running damage control rather than addressing the substance of the allegations.

This is not a new front for Cruz. He has spent months campaigning against what he describes as the slaughter of Christians in Nigeria, and earlier introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act, 2025. The bill would:

• Target government officials accused of facilitating violence against Christians
• Sanction those enforcing blasphemy laws
• Push Nigeria back onto the US Country of Particular Concern list

Cruz argues that enforcement of blasphemy and Sharia laws, combined with what he calls official indifference to jihadist attacks, has created conditions that allow violence against Christians and other religious minorities to continue.

"The US government knows the Nigerian officials responsible for these policies. I have been pushing my bill to sanction them, and President Trump has even ordered military action," Cruz said.

He also praised President Donald Trump's handling of the Nigeria Christian persecution issue, while accusing the Nigerian government of quietly betting that it can ride out the pressure and keep things as they are.

Nigerian officials have consistently rejected this characterization. Presidential spokespeople have repeatedly said the country is not fighting a religious war, arguing that Boko Haram and armed bandit groups attack Muslims, Christians, farmers, worshippers and security forces without discrimination. Tinubu has publicly called the "religiously intolerant" label inaccurate and said his government remains committed to protecting people of all faiths.

That disagreement, sharp and unresolved, is really what is driving this latest exchange.