U.S. VISIT TO NIGERIA: FACT-FINDING OR CURATED NARRATIVE?

 U.S. VISIT TO NIGERIA: FACT-FINDING OR CURATED NARRATIVE?

By Tijjani Sarki, Good Governance Advocate and Public Policy Analyst

13th December 2025


The recent visit by a U.S. Congressional delegation to Nigeria leaves more questions than answers. Officially a fact-finding mission on security, the itinerary tells a different story. Led by Congressman Riley Moore and including Representatives Mario Díaz-Balart, Norma Torres, Scott Franklin, and Juan Ciscomani, the delegation met Nigerian officials in Abuja and toured Benue State,but skipped the states facing the fiercest assaults from Boko Haram, ISWAP, and armed bandits, Borno, Zamfara, and Katsina.


This selective engagement raises a stark question, was the mission truly about understanding Nigeria’s security realities, or a carefully managed showcase designed to fit a narrative? By focusing on Benue a state mainly affected by farmer-herder conflicts and displacement, the U.S. risks signaling that communal violence and allegations of religious persecution matter more than the prolonged insurgency devastating the North East and North West. Meanwhile, communities living under daily terror, kidnappings, and armed criminal networks remain unseen and unheard. Such omissions create a dangerously incomplete picture, one that could shape U.S. policy while ignoring the nation’s most urgent crises.


Even within Benue, the consequences of partial engagement were obvious. Idoma youths were excluded from meetings, sparking protests and exposing the dangers of uneven representation. On a national scale, bypassing the North East and North West feeds perceptions of political bias in U.S. policy, weakens bilateral security cooperation, and risks misguiding decisions on aid, counter-terrorism, and strategic partnerships.


The impact extends beyond perception. Emphasizing North-Central communal conflicts while neglecting Borno, Zamfara,kebbi and Katsina risks distorting resource allocation, misdirecting security planning, and diverting attention from the regions facing the most acute threats. These are not abstract issues, they are human lives under siege, communities struggling to survive amid relentless insecurity.


The Nigerian government maintains that the violence is rooted in banditry, terrorism, and resource conflicts, not religious persecution. Yet, the Trump administration recently designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, intensifying international scrutiny. Some U.S. lawmakers, including members of the House Appropriations Committee and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), accuse the Nigerian government of failing to halt what they describe as a “genocidal campaign” by extremist groups and armed militias. Congressman Moore framed his visit as guided by faith and national interest, stating: “I came to Nigeria in the name of the Lord and on behalf of the American people…Happy Sunday. God is Great!”


National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, who hosted the delegation in Abuja, confirmed discussions focused on counter-terrorism cooperation, regional stability, and strengthening the Nigeria–U.S. strategic partnership. While he expressed optimism about deepening trust, the narrow scope of the visit casts doubt on whether such goals can be realized.


True fact-finding demands confronting the full reality on the ground. U.S. policymakers can only offer meaningful support if they witness the devastation in the North East and North West not just the regions that make convenient headlines. Anything less risks misrepresentation, misplaced priorities, and lost opportunities to reinforce a vital partnership with a strategic West African ally.


Nigeria cannot afford engagement that prioritizes optics over reality. Its most imperiled citizens deserve full recognition of their suffering. U.S. policymakers have a duty not only to see and understand, but also to act decisively. Ignoring the hardest-hit regions is not mere oversight, it is a failure of responsibility, empathy, and strategic judgment, with real consequences for diplomacy, security, and human lives.


Written from Kano, 

can be reached via 

tijjanisarki.blogspot.com.

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