Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar has said Nigeria’s constitution does not permit religious persecution.
Minister Tuggar stated this on Tuesday at a press conference in Berlin, Germany, where he addressed comments by United States President Donald Trump about the killing of Christians in Nigeria.
“It’s impossible for there to be a religious persecution that can be supported in any way, shape or form by the government of Nigeria at any level,” Tuggar said.
Trump had said on social media over the weekend that he asked the Pentagon to prepare a plan for possible military action, alleging that “Christians are being killed in large numbers” in Nigeria.
Yusuf Tuggar, however, said Nigeria remains committed to religious freedom and the rule of law.
He said the government does not support any attempt to divide the country along religious or ethnic lines.
“What we are trying to make the world understand is that we should not create another Sudan,” Tuggar said.
“We’ve seen what happened with Sudan, with agitations for partitioning based on religion or tribal sentiments, and you can see the crisis even after the partitioning was done.”
Nigeria has denied that Christians are being targeted more than other faith groups by insurgent attacks.
