Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese and Convener of the National Peace Committee (NPC), Most Rev. Matthew Hassan Kukah, has pushed back against widespread claims that Christians in Nigeria are facing persecution or genocide, insisting that many of the figures circulating in public discourse are inaccurate and sensational.
Kukah, who has recently been criticised for reportedly cautioning the international community against branding Nigeria a “country of particular concern,” made the clarification while delivering a lecture at the 46th Supreme Convention of the Knights of St. Mulumba (KSM) in Kaduna.
The bishop questioned reports that over a thousand churches are destroyed annually in Nigeria, saying no one has approached the Catholic Church for verifiable data.
“People say 1,200 churches are burnt every year. In which Nigeria?” he asked. “The figures flying around don’t come from us. Nobody calls to verify anything. Those pushing the persecution narrative avoid the Catholic Church because they know we don’t trade in rumours.”
Kukah also criticised loose usage of the term “genocide,” stressing that it is defined by intent—not by how many people are killed.
“You can kill millions of people and it still won’t qualify as genocide if the intention is not to eliminate a particular group,” he explained. “Numbers alone do not determine genocide; intent does.”
He said his position aligns with that of the Vatican Secretary of State, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, and the entire Catholic hierarchy in the country.
Questioning the notion that Christians are oppressed, Kukah pointed to their significant influence in education and the economy.
“If you say Christians are persecuted in Nigeria, how?” he asked. “Eighty percent of educated Nigerians are Christians, and Christians control as much as 85% of the economy. With such dominance, how can persecution be the conclusion?”
Rather than persecution, Kukah argued that Christian disunity is a bigger challenge.
“Our problem is that we give in to bullies,” he said. “When we stand together and insist that an injury to one is an injury to all, half of these issues will disappear.”
The bishop also cautioned against presenting every violent death involving a Christian as martyrdom.
“Someone killed in a church is not automatically a martyr,” he said. “If a person dies while committing a crime or is attacked by bandits, does that make them a martyr? We must think through these things carefully.”
Referring to his earlier remarks at the Vatican, Kukah said people distorted his message.
“I presented a 1,270-page study on genocide in Nigeria and elsewhere. Nowhere did I say Nigeria is experiencing genocide or martyrdom,” he clarified.
Kukah urged members of the Knights of St. Mulumba to defend the Catholic Church—not with weapons, but through integrity, unity, and a life that reflects Christian values.
