OPINION: Alleged Genocide — Why I Prepared My Will Before Coming to Nigeria
By Amb. John Sele Philip, CEO, Sele Media Africa

In recent days, the words of former U.S. Mayor Arnold have reverberated across media spaces, both in Nigeria and internationally. With chilling honesty, he declared:
⁠“I prepared my will before coming to Nigeria.”

This was not hyperbole. It was the stark reality of a man who had uncovered enough evidence to believe that visiting Nigeria could cost him his life.

A Hidden Crisis Few Dare to Name
Since 2019, Arnold has been investigating what he now strongly suggests amounts to genocide — a systemic, targeted pattern of violence, displacement, and erasure occurring under the radar of both local and global attention.

⁠“I have been to Nigeria for the past 15 years. I have been all over the country,” he said. “We have a team that went undercover to numerous IDP camps and got to know many IDPs personally.”

Arnold’s team of undercover observers visited multiple IDP camps — not for staged photo ops, but for deep listening. What they documented were not isolated incidents of conflict, but a coordinated failure of protection. A collapse of the promise of security for the most vulnerable Nigerians.

They listened to accounts of:
•⁠ ⁠Ethnic cleansing in parts of Benue, Kaduna, and Plateau
•⁠ ⁠Systemic attacks on Christian communities and farmers
•⁠ ⁠Government silence and lack of justice for mass killings

These are allegations that need not only headlines, but investigations, tribunals, and international accountability.

Silence is Complicity
If Arnold’s fears are even half-justified, then we are living through a human rights disaster being normalized by media fatigue and political convenience.

As CEO of Sele Media Africa, I strongly believe that journalism’s most sacred duty is to give voice to those deliberately silenced, and to document truth before history is rewritten by the powerful.

The Call to Action
This is not the time for empty patriotism or press releases. It is a time for:
•⁠ ⁠International observers to demand access to IDP camps without political interference
•⁠ ⁠Nigerian civil society to rise beyond tribal and religious lines
•⁠ ⁠Lawmakers to prioritize displaced Nigerians over campaign optics
•⁠ ⁠And for the media to stop sanitizing headlines while people bleed in silence

Final Words
Arnold’s testimony is not just about fear — it is about courage. He came, knowing the risks, because he believes Nigeria is worth saving. He chose to risk his name, reputation, and life for the sake of justice.

Will we, as Nigerians, risk our comfort to confront the same truths?

Let history not remember us as the generation that chose silence over salvation.
Citations:

1. The Guardian Nigeria: guardian.ng/news/world/us-mayor-questions-nigerias-approach-to-terrorism/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
2. TheCable: www.thecable.ng/reno-omokri-ex-texas-mayor-spar-over-claims-of-christian-genocide-in-nigeria/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

About The Author