LAGOS, Nigeria — Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), has called on President Bola Tinubu to act swiftly and engage in diplomatic dialogue with U.S. President Donald Trump following threats of possible American military intervention in Nigeria over alleged persecution of Christians.
Speaking during the November Holy Ghost Service at the Redemption City on Friday, Adeboye urged the Nigerian leader to “move fast and wisely” to persuade Trump to delay any planned action for at least 100 days, while the federal government works to decisively eliminate terrorism and insurgency.
“If I were asked to make suggestions, I would say to our government: move fast, move diplomatically, move wisely,” Adeboye said.
“Find a way to convince the president of America to delay his actions for about 100 days. Then come home and tell our security chiefs to get rid of these terrorists within 90 days or resign.”
Last week, President Trump ordered the U.S. Department of Defence to “prepare for possible action” in Nigeria, accusing the Tinubu administration of turning a blind eye to what he described as the “killing of Christians.”
He further branded Nigeria a “disgraced country.”
The Nigerian government has firmly rejected the accusations, insisting that there is no campaign of religious persecution and that its security challenges affect all citizens regardless of faith.
Adeboye, however, said the situation requires urgent diplomacy, warning that global condemnation alone would not shield Nigeria from the consequences of a potential American strike.
“When I say our leaders should move fast, diplomatically, and wisely, it’s because if America attacks us, China, Russia, and other world powers will condemn it strongly — but that’s all they’ll do,” he cautioned.
“Britain won’t come to help us. No foreign power will. This is not the time for jokes, grammar, or arguments. It’s not about Christians or Muslims — innocent people are dying.”
The RCCG leader also urged Tinubu to expose and prosecute the sponsors of terrorism in Nigeria, regardless of their political or economic influence.
“Our government must identify and expose the sponsors of terrorism and insurgency across the country, no matter who they are,” he said.
Adeboye revealed that he has privately engaged successive presidents on security concerns, saying, “You can only advise the Commander-in-Chief — you can’t command him.”
Adeboye also took issue with a section of President Tinubu’s October 1 Independence Day address, in which the president declared that “peace has returned to hundreds of our liberated communities” in the north.
The cleric said he was troubled by that claim, arguing that it misrepresented the realities on the ground.
“I almost spoke last month when I heard the speech of my in-law (Tinubu), particularly that section that spoke about security,” Adeboye said.
“I heard him saying all is well now, that displaced people have returned to their villages. I almost said the one who wrote that speech does not like him. Somebody wrote it, but it was the president who read it. The question is: Didn’t he see the speech before he read it?”
Adeboye added that several advisers around the president were not telling him the truth about the worsening insecurity.
“My conclusion is that several people around my beloved in-law are not telling him the truth. The following day, we read that a traditional ruler was killed in Kwara or Kogi,” he said.
The 82-year-old cleric acknowledged that Tinubu inherited a complex security landscape but insisted that decisive leadership is needed to restore peace.
“Our president inherited this problem. I am an applied mathematician; I am only interested in getting the problem solved,” Adeboye said.
“We once lived in a Nigeria where Christians and Muslims coexisted peacefully — it was politics that brought division.”
