Nigeria’s Moment of Reckoning: A Call for Sovereignty, Strategy, and Sincerity. By Chidi Ekeh

Nigeria’s Moment of Reckoning: A Call for Sovereignty, Strategy, and Sincerity

The United States’ redesignation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) over allegations of religious persecution, particularly against Christians, is not just another diplomatic slap—it is a mirror held up to Nigeria’s face, reflecting the incompetence, complicity, and chronic inaction of its own government in the face of mass atrocities. The threat of American military intervention, while politically charged and controversial, is not the real enemy. The enemy is within.

Nigerians are not blind. We see the pattern: jihadists and bandits strike with precision and impunity; villages are razed; worshippers are murdered in churches and mosques alike; and the military arrives too late to stop the killings, but never too late to stop reprisals. This is not just failure—it is tactical negligence. And now, the world is watching.

But here is the hard truth: if American boots ever touch Nigerian soil, it will not be because Trump loves Christians—it will be because our government failed to protect its own people.

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President Tinubu, This Is Your Moment—Not for Speeches, But for Strategy

Nigerians don’t want another press release. We want a holistic, transparent, and time-bound national security plan to eradicate jihadist insurgency, banditry, and ethno-religious violence—not just manage it. Here’s what that plan must include:

1. A National Security Reset
– Disband and restructure the current security architecture.

The NSA, service chiefs, and intelligence heads must be held accountable for operational failures.
– Merge counterterrorism efforts under a unified command with real-time intelligence sharing between the military, DSS, NIA, and police.
– Declare a 12-month state of emergency in the North-East, North-West, and parts of the North-Central, with military-civilian joint task forces empowered to hold ground, not just raid and retreat.

2. A War on Terror Financing
– Freeze and investigate all bank accounts linked to known jihadist sympathizers, including religious leaders, NGOs, and government officials.
– Ban foreign funding for religious organizations without full transparency and audit trails.
– Set up a special tribunal to prosecute terrorism financiers and enablers within 90 days of arrest—no delays, no bail.

3. A Digital Surveillance and Drone Offensive
– Deploy AI-powered surveillance drones across known terror corridors in Borno, Zamfara, Kaduna, and Niger.
– Establish a national citizen reporting app linked to a secure database for real-time terror alerts and missing persons.
– Partner with Israeli and UAE tech firms for border control, not just for Abuja VIPs but for rural villages most at risk.

4. A Community-Based Defense Force
– Recruit, train, and arm local vigilantes in every terror-affected LGA, with monthly stipends and legal protection.
– Legalize state police—not as a political tool, but as a constitutional right for states to protect their people.
– Create a National Religious Freedom Protection Unit under the NSCDC to monitor, investigate, and prevent faith-based violence.

5. A Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission
– Document every massacre since 2009, with names, dates, locations, and perpetrators—whether Boko Haram, bandits, or herdsmen.
– Compensate victims’ families and rebuild destroyed communities with federal funds, not NGO handouts.
– Prosecute security officers who failed to act on intelligence or who aided and abetted attacks.

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To President Tinubu: Match Words With War

We don’t want another “we are committed to peace” tweet. We want:

– Monthly security briefings to the public, not just to the National Assembly.
– A live dashboard showing terror arrests, convictions, and recovered territories.
– A presidential pledge: “If Nigeria is invaded due to our failure, I will resign.”

Because sovereignty is not just about borders—it’s about credibility. And right now, Nigeria’s credibility is bleeding out in the fields of Plateau, the forests of Zamfara, and the villages of Borno.

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To Nigerians: Hold This Government Hostage to Accountability

If the Americans come, it will not be a rescue mission—it will be a receipt for our collective silence. So let us be clear:

> We will not support foreign boots on our soil. But we will also not shield incompetent leaders from the consequences of their betrayal.

If this government allows Nigeria to be humiliated by foreign invasion, then every minister, every general, every governor who failed to act must be dragged before the people—not just for elections, but for accountability.

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Final Word: This Is Not About Trump. This Is About Us.

The CPC designation is not just a Trumpian spectacle. It is a global indictment of a nation that has normalised bloodshed. But it is also an opportunity—to reclaim our land, our dignity, and our future.

So, President Tinubu, don’t just reject the label—reject the conditions that earned it. Give us a plan. Give us results. Give us a Nigeria where no religion is a death sentence.

Because if you don’t, history will not remember Trump as the invader—it will remember you as the one who opened the gate.

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Nigerians are watching. And we are not afraid to hold you accountable.

Ekeh Chidiebere writes on national identity, leadership, and the rebirth of civic consciousness in 2nd November 2025