Christian genocide in Nigeria real — ECWA General Secretary

General Secretary of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Dr Ayuba Asheshe, has stated that there are incontrovertible evidence that Christian genocide is real in Nigeria as posited by the US President, Donald Trump.

The General Secretary who disclosed that insecurity has claimed 19,100 churches, 600 clergymen abducted, 52,000 Christians killed in Nigeria said the government need to take serious action and position concerning the security challenges racing the country.

Addressing newsmen in Jos, Dr Asheshe mentioned that documented evidence showed that 1,200 churches annually, about 100 every month or three daily, totaling 19,100 churches over 16 years were burnt and destroyed.

According to him, more than 600 clerics, comprising of 350 pastors and 250 Catholic priests, have been abducted, with many killed, adding that between 2009 and 2023, an estimated 52,000 Christians were killed, 18,500 abducted, and over 20,000
churches and Christian communities attacked.

“Also, statistics by Open Doors USA showed that 82% of Christians killed worldwide between October 2022 and September 2023 were Nigerians, while over 3.5 million Christians have been displaced, their homes and churches burned to ashes.

“Reports by Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), more than 100,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria over the past two decades. And within ECW

A alone, 208 members were abducted between 2023 and 2024, several of whom have lost their lives in captivity,” he said.

The church urged the government to do more to stem the tide of continuous attacks, burning of churches and killing of Christians across the country.

He applauded recent genuine efforts of the Federal Government for the awakening to strengthen the Nigerian security architecture by working to take decisive steps to confront the persistent insecurity challenges across in Nigeria.

“In light of this, ECWA welcomes the Federal Government’s very recent efforts in intensifying targeted operations against bandits, terrorists, and other insecurity proponents enhancing intelligence gathering and inter-agency collaboration planning intentionally to support the return of displaced persons to their communities, strengthening security presence in previously neglected hotspots and demonstrating greater political will in addressing long-standing grievances and root causes of insecurity, and exposing plus punishing sponsors of the dastardly act.”

Ashese said the measures, though still at the early stages, reflected a commendable shift toward protecting the sanctity of human life, upholding justice, and restoring confidence in the capacity of the state to defend its citizens.