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By Chinelo Obogo
A civil rights activist, Dr. Thompson Udenwa, has faulted the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Rev. Matthew Kukah, for saying Nigeria should not be placed on the list of Countries of Particular Concern by the US government
Udenwa said in a statement that a few years ago, the outspoken cleric had been at the forefront of urging the US government to designate Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern over attacks on Christian communities, church burnings, and targeted killings in parts of the North and Middle Belt. He however said that Kukah’s change of tone is “reflective of the inconsistency that should not be seen in political and religious leaders.”
Bishop Kukah’s latest comments which came during the launch of the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) 2025 World Report on Religious Freedom held at the Augustinianum Hall, Vatican City, on October 21, 2025, where he acknowledged Nigeria’s deep-seated security and governance challenges but urged the international community not to punish the country through sanctions or diplomatic isolation.
Bishop Kukah said: “Designating my country, Nigeria, a country of concern will only make our work in the area of dialogue among religious leaders in our country and elsewhere with the Nigerian state even harder. It will only increase tensions, sow doubt, open windows of suspicion and fear, and simply allow the criminals and perpetrators of violence to exploit.”
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Udenwa queried why Kukah who in 2021 addressed the American Congress where he lamented the Buhari administration’s alleged indifference to Christian persecution would now advocate against the very measure he once described as “moral justice.”
According to him, such inconsistency weakens the credibility of religious advocacy. “While I distance myself from the political undercurrents in the ongoing debate, I find Bishop Kukah’s recent statement troubling. Not long ago, he stood as one of the loudest voices calling for international recognition of the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Today, he appears to have retreated from that conviction,” Udenwa said.
While acknowledging the bishop’s emphasis on dialogue and cooperation, Udenwa said, “Such arguments could embolden the Nigerian government to continue avoiding accountability for the growing number of unprosecuted attacks against communities of all faiths.
“Bishop Kukah by his volte-face, has demonstrated that religious leaders should be selfless and consistent in their advocacy at all times.”
The statement concluded by urging all faith leaders to resist the temptation of selective criticism and to maintain integrity in speaking truth to power, regardless of changing political climates.
