Olubadan: Trump’s Warning a Wake-Up Call for Nigeria to Confront Terrorism
The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, has described U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent comments on Nigeria as a wake-up call for the nation to confront terrorism head-on and heal religious divisions.
Speaking while receiving the President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Bishop Wale Oke, at his palace in Oke Aremo, Ibadan North Local Government Area, the monarch urged Nigerians to unite against terrorism and “fight it to a standstill while placating the aggrieved.”
In a statement issued by his media aide, Adeola Oloko, on Sunday, Oba Ladoja lamented that Nigeria has been battling terrorism for over a decade — dating back to the final years of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration in 2014.
“Many people have been killed and property worth an inestimable amount of money destroyed. Multitudes of families, particularly women and children, have been displaced. Kidnappings have taken place,” the monarch said.
He noted that successive administrations — from Jonathan to Muhammadu Buhari and now President Bola Tinubu — have made efforts to combat insecurity, but warned that terrorism remains a threat to all Nigerians, regardless of religion.
“Terrorists don’t know the difference between Muslims and Christians. They see everybody as prey, while they are the predator,” he added. “We must unite as one people to overcome this menace and also placate our brethren who feel aggrieved by the violence.”
Oba Ladoja also praised the peaceful coexistence among people of different faiths in the South-West, urging other regions to emulate such harmony.
Earlier, Bishop Wale Oke congratulated Ladoja on his emergence as the 44th Olubadan of Ibadanland, praying that God grants him wisdom and understanding to lead with fairness and compassion.
The PFN President also called on President Tinubu to work closely with U.S. President Donald Trump to address the killings and attacks ravaging several communities across the country, particularly in the North.
Meanwhile, President Tinubu on Friday met with the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’adu Abubakar, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, days after holding a similar meeting with the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Bishop Ignatius Kaigama.
According to sources, the meetings are part of ongoing consultations with religious and traditional leaders following Trump’s description of Nigeria as a country facing religious persecution and human rights abuses.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, accompanied the Sultan to the meeting.
Nigeria’s federal government has since rejected the U.S. characterisation, insisting that violence across the country is driven by multiple factors — not religion — and that the constitution guarantees freedom of worship for all citizens.
