United States Congressman Bill Huizenga has launched fresh criticism against President Bola Tinubu's government, accusing the administration of failing to confront Nigeria's escalating security crisis. The lawmaker made these allegations during a testimony before the US House Subcommittee on Africa on Thursday, November 20, 2025.
Congressman Condemns Government Response
During the hearing that reviewed Nigeria's redesignation as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), Huizenga directly faulted the Tinubu administration's approach to security matters. The congressman alleged that Nigerian officials had deliberately downplayed the severity of the crisis during their meetings in Washington.
"It ought to be outrageous that it is Christians, moderate Muslims, and anyone being terrorised by these radicalised Islamists in Nigeria, and we've got the Tinubu government sitting back and not doing enough," Huizenga stated emphatically.
The lawmaker revealed that during a recent interview with Nigerian television, he was asked whether the Tinubu government was doing enough to address the security challenges. "I had to answer, 'No, they are not,'" Huizenga told the subcommittee.
Media and Congressional Silence Criticized
Huizenga extended his criticism beyond the Nigerian government, taking aim at what he described as widespread denial and de-emphasis of the crisis by both media outlets and some members of Congress. The congressman expressed frustration that despite personal connections to Nigeria through schoolmates and missionary neighbors who confirm the severity of the situation, many continue to ignore the reality.
"I went to school with kids from Nigeria. We've got neighbours who've been missionaries there, who have family there, who have friends there, who know this is going on. Yet, we've got not just the mass media, we've got people within the Congress denying that this is happening, or certainly de-emphasising it," he lamented.
Pattern of Religious Violence Questioned
The lawmaker pointed to specific incidents to illustrate the persistent nature of the security crisis, particularly highlighting the Christmas Eve 2023 attack that claimed 200 lives. Huizenga used this tragic event as evidence that security conditions have shown little improvement under the current administration.
Raising concerns about the religious dimensions of the violence, the congressman posed a critical question: "Do we see Christians killing Muslims the way radicalised Islamists kill Christians in Muslim areas?" This inquiry underscored his concerns about the pattern of religious-based attacks in the country.
The hearing comes following US President Donald Trump's decision to reinstate Nigeria on the CPC list on October 31, 2025, citing systematic persecution of Christians. The committee is also scheduled to hear testimony from senior US State Department officials and Nigerian religious leaders as part of its comprehensive review.
In response to these allegations, the Nigerian government has maintained its position rejecting the characterizations. President Tinubu has previously stated that "Nigeria stands firmly as a democracy governed by constitutional guarantees of religious liberty," asserting that the depiction of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect the country's actual situation.
This marks the second time Nigeria has faced the CPC designation, having first been listed in 2020 under former President Trump before being removed by President Joe Biden shortly after he assumed office.
