A human rights group, Intersociety has accused the government of President Muhammadu Buhari of deepening and consolidating the pursuit of radical and annihilative policy of State Jihadism; thereby encouraging reprisal radicalisation and undermining the unity, Constitution and secularity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The group quoted a recent report of Open Doors, an anti-Christian persecution watchdog, as saying the attack against Christians in Nigeria has become rampant in the North and in 2015 alone; there were 4,028 Christian killings and 198 attacks on churches, which nearly doubled those of the previous year.

The report also says the persecution is carried out by three groups – Islamist Boko Haram terror group, Muslim Fulani herdsmen and the Muslim religious fanatics oiled by political elite as well as top politico-security appointees.

“The Open Doors also stated in its report that 1.3 million Christians had fled their homes to safer places to avoid being hacked to death by religious fanatics and that between 2009 and 2014; a period of five years, 11,500 Christians were killed and 13,000 churches destroyed in Boko Haram insurgency,” Intersociety said.

The statement was jointly signed by its Board Chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi; Head, Democracy & Good Governance Programme, Barr Chinwe Umeche; Head, Civil Liberties & Rule of Law Programme, Barr Obianuju Joy Igboeli; and Head, Campaign & Publicity Department, Barr Uzochukwu Oguejiofor-Nwonu. It noted that at the heat of the politically oiled Boko Haram terror, Christian communities in the Northeast were carefully uprooted and decimated and during preparations for 2015 general elections particularly the presidential poll, Christians in their millions, were denied permanent voters cards and every single living Muslim including millions of the under-aged were captured and issued with voting cards.

Intersociety said: “For instance, Mr. Francis Emmanuel, a Christian carpenter, was attacked by some Muslim fanatics backed by violent northern politicians. The attack took place in Kakuri area of Kaduna State. He was inflicted with deep machete cuts on his head and other parts of his body for ‘eating during the Ramadan fast.’

“Another Christian, a 74-year-old member of Deeper Life Bible Church, Mrs. Bridget Agbahime, was stoned to death in Kano by some Muslim traders for ‘blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed.’

“In the same period, a 42-year-old Deaconess Eunice Elisha Olawale, a member of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Abuja was murdered by some sponsored Muslim fanatics during her early morning preaching in her neighborhood.

“On 15^th of July 2016, worshipers at Saint Philip Catholic Church in Baki Ikun along Kaduna Road in Suleja, Niger State and their Church were invaded, attacked and burnt by some politically sponsored Muslim fanatics for ‘worshiping on Friday solely meant for Muslims.’

“Other instances of killing including beheading and lynching of Christians and burning of their sacred places of worship by the malicious and untamed entities named above are too numerous to mention.

“Through State created, aided and abetted Fulani Janjaweed violence, targeted at rural Christian populations in North-central or Middle-Belt, Southeast and South-south Nigeria, thousands of innocent rural Christians have also been murdered in their sleep and farms. Since the inception of the Buhari administration on 29th May 2015, over 1, 000 Christians have been massacred.

“In 2014 alone, 1,229 mostly Christians were massacred by the Government backed agro-religious fundamentalist group, erroneously called ‘Fulani Herdsmen.’ In six months of 2015 (January-June), 621 mostly rural Christians were massacred. In this 2016 alone, over 500 including over a dozen Christian priests and royal fathers have been butchered in their sleep and farms by the Government backed Janjaweed. The list of persecution and butchering of Christians in Nigeria is inexhaustible.”

•Photo shows President Buhari.

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