The African Democratic Congress has reacted to the decision of United States President, Donald Trump, naming Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” on October 31, 2025, saying the development reflects a global worry over Nigeria’s rising insecurity.
PUNCH Online had reported that Trump threatened to deploy military forces in Nigeria if the alleged genocide against Christians is not stopped in the country.
Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, directed the Department of War to prepare for “possible action” if the killings continued.
The ADC in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, on Monday, said the action by Trump again highlights the urgency and scale of Nigeria’s security collapse.
“We are guided by the painful reality that what is really at stake on this issue are the thousands of human lives that have been lost to insecurity in Nigeria, irrespective of their tribe, religion, or region,” the party said.
It added that the U.S President’s designation underlines the global expectation that governments must protect the lives of citizens living within their borders.
“The statement by President Trump reminds us of the greater global concern about the sanctity of human life, and the cardinal responsibility of national governments to protect the lives of people who live within their borders,” Abdullahi noted.
According to the ADC, insecurity under President Bola Tinubu had worsened, with thousands of Nigerians killed in violent attacks since June 2023.
“Available reports indicate that nearly 15,000 lives have been lost to sundry violent activities since this administration assumed office in 2023,” the statement read.
It warned that the crisis was no longer regional or religious, but a national existential threat.
“The crisis that we face is therefore not about any ethnic or religious group being targeted for killing; it is an existential crisis that imperils all Nigerians,” it said.
The ADC referenced the attack by JNIM, an Al-Qaeda affiliate, in Kwara State on the same day Trump made the pronouncement.
The party also faulted the Tinubu administration for failing to appoint ambassadors two years into office.
“How can a government that has been boasting of unprecedented revenue success continue to give lack of funds as an excuse for not appointing ambassadors?,” the party questioned.
It added that Nigeria’s continental profile had declined under the current leadership.
The ADC said the government should have shown empathy, accountability and urgency.
“If this government had been less obsessed with politics, propaganda, and self-celebration, it would have taken every single violent attack seriously,” it stated.
The party listed policy steps it said were required immediately, which includes, overhaul of security architecture, appointment of ambassadors, a reset of foreign policy focused on national interest, targeted economic reforms to ease inflation, and depersonalisation of public institutions
It also urged the US and other nations to focus on supporting Nigeria institutionally, not through military threats.
“Mobilising armed troops, or even a mere threat of doing so, would do more harm than good and ultimately prove counterproductive.
“Nigeria is not beyond saving, but time is running out,” ADC concluded.
