Ohanaeze youths reject US military intervention in Nigeria, okay referendum

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council, OYC, has rejected U.S. military action in Nigeria for religious purposes and instead advocated for military action to facilitate an urgent referendum in Nigeria.

The council expressed concerns that the proposed U.S. military action, as announced by President Donald Trump, would be counterproductive in addressing Nigeria’s longstanding issues, which have resulted in the killings of Christians.

The National President of the Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC), Comrade Igboayaka O. Igboayaka, who addressed journalists in Owerri on Wednesday, stated that the Igbo people appreciate the concern of the United States regarding the deliberate killings of Christians in Nigeria, particularly in Eastern Nigeria and the Middle Belt.

However, the group advocated that military action should not be based on religious purposes, but rather to persuade the Federal Government to initiate an urgent referendum within a political framework.

According to OYC, the Igbo people have no need for U.S. military intervention on perceived religious grounds; rather, they suggested that Ndigbo urgently require a referendum in Nigeria.

“A referendum is currently the most pressing requirement for Nigeria. The crowning achievement of our era would be to drive Nigeria towards an eventual referendum. This perspective is not only shared by the Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC), but also by the emerging generation of Igbo extraction and Middle Belt various ethnic groups.

“A referendum is the sole factor that can resonate with the conscience of an Igbo individual or Christian in Nigeria, rather than U.S. military backing for religious reasons. The Christian killings in Eastern Nigeria, particularly in the Southeast geopolitical zone, took a swift dimension since 2015 when a Muslim president, the late Muhammadu Buhari, assumed office.

“It is on record that the Federal Government of Nigeria is using the pretext of countering the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a self-determination movement from Southeast Nigeria led by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, to conceal the deliberate killing of Christians, who make up approximately 95% of IPOB members, at the hands of Federal Government troops.

“The last ten years’ administration of Muslim presidents in Nigeria, from late President Muhammadu Buhari to the current President Bola Tinubu, thousands of Christians in Northern Nigeria, mostly in the Middle Belt and Southeast, have been slaughtered by Fulani herdsmen, bandits, and jihadists. The extra-judicial killings perpetrated by Nigerian military troops in Southeast Nigeria are evidence of Christian genocide.

“A report from the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), a prominent civil rights organization in Nigeria, reveals that in the Southeast, from August 2015 to December 2020, top military commanders sent to Eastern Nigeria were Muslims as they conspired and adopted at least 5,000 Christians who were majorly members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Additionally, from 2015 to 2024, 46,800 Christians were slaughtered collectively by Nigerian military troops, Fulani herdsmen, and bandits.

“In Northern Nigeria and other parts, from 2009–2023, 52,250 Christians were slaughtered/killed, while those abducted without returning to their families from 2009–2015 are 18,000 Christians. In summary, from 2009–May 2023, 125,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria.

“A reported incident occurred in January 2017, in which Nigerian military troops deliberately killed 20 and injured over 70 peaceful protesters from the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), who were commemorating President Donald Trump’s victory.

“We respectfully request that President Donald Trump consider commemorating a mass burial for the unarmed innocent Christian protesters of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) who were celebrating his victory and simultaneously call for the release of their leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

“Furthermore, evidence of mass killings of Christians in Nigeria is supported by statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics, which show that from May 2023 to April 2024, insecurity led to the killing of 614,373 Nigerians.

“The Council urges President Donald Trump to facilitate an end to Christian genocide by supporting Nigerian Christians in conducting a referendum within one year, thereby minimizing further casualties.

“We beckon on President Donald Trump to know that Christian killings in Nigeria are driven by economic interests, territorial or land-grabbing ambitions, ethnic cleansing, and political oligarchy systems, utilizing Fulani herdsmen, bandits, and jihadists as a platform for destruction against Christians in Nigeria.

The group implored President Donald Trump to wield his authority as a Christian to deliver Christians in Africa, especially in Nigeria, from persecution, stressing that inaction now may lead to his successors showing little interest in resolving the issue.