Wednesday, December 10, 2025 - Elder statesman, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai says there is no truth to the claims that Nigerian Christians are being targeted in a “genocide”
He said Christians and Muslims have lived together peacefully for generations.
The elderstates man who just turned 100 years old accused
some foreign media outlets of “inflaming religious tensions” and faulted United
States President Donald Trump for suggesting Christians were being targeted.
He said a few Nigerians with ties to the U.S. fed Trump with
misleading stories.
According to Yakasai, “I don’t agree there is Christian
genocide. Some Christians close to the United States of America took advantage
of their closeness to Donald Trump.”
He said both religions have always lived side by side:
“Christians and Muslims have been living in peace with one another; we are
brothers and sisters.”
He added that mixed-faith families have existed in the
Middle Belt long before colonial rule.
“In every home, we have Christians and Muslims living
together in peace,” he said.
Yakasai also described Trump as “an opportunist”, saying the
President was misled by individuals “seeking relevance.”
On insecurity, he said the problem affects the whole country
but is worse in the North.
He supported creating zonal police commands to improve
security response but rejected state police, saying they could be manipulated.
His words: “There was a move at one time that there should
be the establishment of a zonal police… the number of the police force is not
enough to cover the whole country.”
He added: “State police are subject to manipulation by
individuals and political interests.”
On politics, Yakasai said he expects President Bola Tinubu
to contest in 2027 and possibly win.
“President Tinubu will seek a second term and is most likely
to win because he has the resources to back his ambition,” he said.
He noted that every country has its own challenges and no
single group can be blamed.
“Any country has its problems… wherever you have people, you
have problems,” he said.
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