Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has condemned US President Donald Trump’s threat to send American troops to Nigeria, describing the remark as reckless and lacking any real understanding of the nation’s complex security situation.
Soyinka spoke in Makurdi after a meeting with Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia. He said no foreign leader could intervene meaningfully in Nigeria’s security crisis without first appreciating the layers of political, ethnic and socio-economic factors driving the conflict.
According to him, Trump’s declaration that he would “come to help” Nigeria was careless and uninformed.
“You don’t just open your mouth and say, ‘I’m coming to help you whether you like it or not… and I’m coming with violence from outside with poor, almost non-existent analysis of the complexities of where the problem is,’” Soyinka said.
He added that statements promising swift and forceful external action only trivialised the suffering of victims and the ongoing efforts of those trying to restore peace.
“And you say, ‘I’m coming to help you, I’m coming with guns a-blazing. And when we come in, it’s going to be fast, vicious and swift.’ Is that the language of somebody whose head is correct?” he asked.
Soyinka reiterated that Nigeria’s security problems are rooted in the activities of violent extremists who misuse religion for political and economic gain, not in religious differences themselves.
He stressed that while government has a duty to protect its citizens, those affected by attacks also deserve empathy and responsible leadership.
Trump had on October 31 designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” over alleged attacks on Christians and threatened military intervention if the situation persisted.
President Bola Tinubu dismissed the claim, saying the allegation “does not reflect Nigeria’s national reality.”
