The New Nigeria Peoples Party has expressed shock over reports that the United States Congress is considering a bill titled The Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act 2026 HR 7457 in which the party’s national leader Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was named as the only individual, alongside the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association and a Fulani ethnic militia, to face targeted sanctions including visa bans and asset freezes.
According to the reports, the proposed sanctions are linked to allegations of “severe religious freedom violations.”
Reacting to the development, the NNPP National Publicity Secretary Ladipo Johnson dismissed the allegations, stating that there is no basis whatsoever for linking Senator Kwankwaso to religious freedom abuses.
The party described the inclusion of Kwankwaso as curious and regrettable, stressing that he was being cited for issues he had no involvement in.
“We see this development as a contrived action against an innocent man who clearly has no relationship with religious fundamentalism in Nigeria.
“His record is in the public domain, both in public office and in private life, and it is advisable for people to investigate such matters properly before reaching such conclusions,” the statement said.
Johnson recalled that months earlier, Senator Kwankwaso had publicly reacted when President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over alleged religious persecution.
In a statement posted on his X handle at the time, Kwankwaso warned against what he described as oversimplified characterisations of Nigeria’s internal security challenges.
Kwankwaso stated that it was important to emphasise that Nigeria is a sovereign nation whose people face diverse threats from outlaws across different parts of the country.
However, in a separate post shared on X, US Congressman Riley Moore addressed Kwankwaso directly, stating “Governor, do you care to comment on your own complicity in the death of Christians? You instituted Sharia law. You signed the law that makes so-called blasphemy punishable by death.”
The NNPP said the allegation appears to stem from the introduction of the Sharia legal code in Kano State during Kwankwaso’s tenure as governor, noting that several other northern states including Zamfara Sokoto Katsina Yobe Jigawa and Borno adopted similar legal frameworks.
“But is this enough to accuse Kwankwaso of severe religious freedom violations? Why were the other state governors who introduced Sharia in their states not accused as well?” the party asked.
“Is Rep. Moore being fair or selective? Isn’t the US in good relations with Qatar and Saudi Arabia, both Sharia countries? Why is this coming just after our government apparently paid for a consultant in the US? Isn’t it strange that it is Kwankwaso, an opposition leader who has spoken out repeatedly about insecurity under this administration, that the United States now seems to be turning on?”
The party further recalled that during Kwankwaso’s time as governor of Kano State, the Boko Haram sect was eliminated from the state, adding that his long standing relationships with Christian leaders in Kano and across the country support his record as a national leader and statesman.
“Even when he was pressured to introduce Sharia, he still lost his election because predominantly Muslim voters punished him for supporting a Christian presidential candidate Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. Furthermore in 2023 he ran his presidential campaign with a Christian bishop Bishop Isaac Idahosa as his running mate.
“These are the facts which we believe should guide the Congress and its leaders particularly Reps Riley Moore and Chris Smith to carry out a thorough investigation into the credibility of our leader Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso so that justice is done to his noble name and he is cleared of such undue embarrassment,” Johnson said.
