The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has challenged the Federal Government to expose and hold accountable those allegedly behind what it described as a “false and treasonable campaign” portraying Nigeria as a country conducting a genocidal war against Christians.

In a statement issued on Friday and signed by its Deputy National Legal Adviser, Haroun Muhammad Eze, the apex Islamic body said the government’s failure to identify and publicly name the local originators of the “malicious propaganda” was undermining its own efforts to defend the country’s image globally.

The statement, titled “Let’s Call a Spade a Spade About the Real Enemies of Nigeria,” accused some leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) of instigating the false narrative for personal and political gain.

The NSCIA said while it appreciated the “patriotic responses” of several government agencies and the National Assembly in rejecting recent international claims of systematic persecution of Christians, it was concerned that the government stopped short of “speaking the whole truth.”

“Council wondered why the government could not, at least for once, go the whole hog by calling a spade a spade, by speaking the whole truth,” the statement said.

The NSCIA alleged that certain CAN leaders had “found a big business in self-flagellation,” resorting to “activities that verge on treason” to attract sympathy and funding from foreign interests.

“These elements exploit religious antipathy as an easy pathway to global recognition and fame,” it said.

CAN leaders instigating false genocide campaign – NSCIA

According to the Council, the global perception that Nigeria is unsafe for Christians was being deliberately fuelled by “political desperadoes and religious irredentists” seeking to incite religious conflict and delegitimise the government.

It recalled that during the 2023 presidential elections, a presidential candidate was heard in a leaked audio recording telling a religious leader that the poll was a “religious war,” a development it said was part of a broader effort to divide the country along faith lines.

“When they failed miserably at setting Nigerians against one another, they began seeking to delegitimise the government by venting lies and projecting per