Sorry it's a Bit Long I had to squeeze 3 article into one hope you liked it don't forget to comment 😜
By Joshua Omoniyi
The United States did a lot yesterday. Congress held a big briefing. Experts told lawmakers to push our government to make Sharia criminal codes unconstitutional in states that use them and to disband Hisbah enforcement units. They said these laws and groups help violent actors to terrorise communities. That was blunt. It was also loud.
— what actually happened in Washington and who said it The briefing was led by House Appropriations Vice Chair Mario DÃaz-Balart and included members from the Foreign Affairs and Appropriations committees. Witnesses included Ebenezer Obadare from the Council on Foreign Relations, Vicky Hartzler of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and representatives of rights groups. They urged Congress to use diplomatic pressure, early-warning systems and possible conditionality on aid to force accountability in Nigeria. Lawmakers such as Reps Chris Smith and Brian Mast pressed the point that weak rule of law and some local enforcement bodies are being used to oppress minorities and must be reformed.
At the same time witnesses in Washington said the real root of our trouble is jihadist terror—Boko Haram and ISWAP—and armed militias who exploit local laws and local power. One expert said the first task is to degrade and destroy those groups. Then deal with the rest. That argument gave the briefing a clear call to action: pressure Abuja and work with our military to finish the terrorists.
You will hear two kinds of reactions at home. Some people say, finally. They are tired. They have seen villages emptied, churches burned and towns raided. They cheer the idea that someone bigger is now watching. They make memes: “Donald Trump come carry me” or “Donal Trump dey come ohh.” That is how fear and hope look in Nigeria now.
— why this matters right now This matter is not academic. The US recently redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, a move that pushed Tinubu’s government into emergency measures like air strikes and a mass recruitment drive. Washington’s session was a follow up to that redesignation and an attempt to translate outrage into policy offers — satellite help, intelligence sharing, early-warning support and targeted sanctions if needed. Those are the concrete tools experts asked for in the briefing.
Others see danger. They ask why a foreign parliament feels the need to tell us how to run our laws. They worry about sovereignty. They worry about strings attached. They worry the pressure will be used for other aims. Those fears are not nonsense. They are reasonable. Nigeria is free. But freedom does not feed a family or find a missing child. When people call and no one answers, outside help starts to look attractive.
This US push is not new. The United States recently redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern and warned of consequences if things do not change. That move sharpened attention and forced action from Abuja. You saw the effect. There were air strikes, a recruitment drive for police, and a national security emergency. But talk and action are different things. Only results count.
Meanwhile the story that should shame every leader stayed live at home. The Papiri abduction happened. More than 300 pupils and staff were taken from St Mary’s school. About 50 ran and made it back. The rest are still missing. Mothers cannot sleep. Markets thin out at dusk. That is the picture no speech should ignore.
— how witnesses at the US briefing tied Papiri to wider policy At the briefing witnesses singled out the Papiri raid as proof that the crisis is both tactical and structural. They said raids on schools are not random crimes but deliberate strikes that exploit weak policing and thin intelligence. That is why speakers urged Washington to press for reforms that change incentives on the ground: stop secret ransom markets, improve early warning, and hold local actors who enable violence to account.
So what is really going on? Two things. One, we have violent groups who use ideology as cover. Two, our own systems fail when communities call for help. Early warnings are missed. Local leaders call and get silence. That gap is where killers move. If Hisbah or any local body is part of that problem, then the law must act. If some states use religious codes to punish minorities, that must stop. Foreign pressure can nudge change. But the real fix must start here.
Will this American pressure bring salvation or trouble? It depends. If Washington uses influence to help build early warning systems, fund real intelligence, and work with Nigerian agencies to train and equip troops, that is useful. If pressure becomes grandstanding or a way to humiliate our sovereignty, it will backfire. We must be careful and pragmatic. We should accept help for a task we cannot solve alone and still keep the work Nigerian-led.
A few plain things Abuja must do now. Publish a clear plan. Name the commanders. Give timelines. Let civil society monitor releases and rescues. Lease satellite imagery and drones while building local capacity. Train recruits before you send them into forests. Remove any law or enforcement body that is used to hurt neighbours instead of protect them. No more secrecy. No more theatre.
— what Congress said about laws and Hisbah Lawmakers in Washington were explicit: if states use religious criminal codes to exclude or punish minorities, that must be reversed. They urged the U.S. to press for making Sharia criminal codes unconstitutional in the twelve states that use them and to dismantle Hisbah units that act as extra-judicial enforcers. That proposal is controversial at home, but it was central to the hearing and widely reported in the briefing’s communiqués.
Finally, this is not only about religion or foreign policy. It is about mothers and children, about towns that cannot sleep, about schools that close because someone fears the night. If the United States keeps pressing, fine. Use that pressure to force real work. And if our leaders are serious, they will use the moment to fix systems, not just blame outsiders.
We are tired. We are also not helpless. Let the next days show policy, not just noise.
— By Joshua Omoniyi
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