Shehu Sani debunks Bill Maher’s Christian genocide claims
The former Kaduna Central senator, Shehu Sani, on Sunday faulted American television host Bill Maher’s claim that Nigeria is experiencing systemic killings of Christians, describing the remarks as mischievous and misleading.
Sani, a human rights activist and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, made the clarification on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
His comments came shortly after former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, and President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, also dismissed Maher’s allegations of genocide.
Both men argued that Maher’s claims misrepresent Nigeria’s complex security realities, risk inflaming religious divisions, and undermine counterterrorism progress.
Breaking down the nature of violence across the country, Sani maintained that terrorists and bandits do not attack based on religion.
> “We have bandits in the north-western and terrorists in the north-eastern part of Nigeria. In the north-central, we have a mixture of banditry, terrorism, ethno-religious violence, indigenous settlers, and farmers-herdsmen,” he said.
According to him, both Christians and Muslims have been victims of violent attacks.
> “It’s important people understand that as far as bandits and terrorists are concerned, they do not discriminate their victims on the basis of their faith. Muslims, just like Christians, are killed by bandits and terrorists. They attack churches and mosques. They kill pastors, priests and imams.
> Just a few weeks ago, there was an attack in a mosque in Katsina where Muslims were killed. There was also an attack a few days ago in Zamfara in which Muslims were killed. We have also had attacks in Plateau and Benue State,” Sani added.
The ex-lawmaker noted that political silence often distorts public perception of the crisis.
> “When I was in the Senate, and there were killings in southern and northern Kaduna, you would see lawmakers from Christian southern Kaduna standing up on the floor of the Senate and House of Representatives to speak. But when similar attacks happened in the north, Muslim lawmakers often remained quiet.
> That silence made it seem as though killings were directed at one side, whereas the reality is that terrorists and bandits spare no one,” he said.
Sani therefore urged both local and international commentators to exercise caution and avoid narratives that could deepen sectarian divides in Nigeria.
