Trump’s Faulty Dance on Global Stage, by Haruna Hadejia

Not until now, I thought Trump is smart
So, Trump is not smart?
I don’t think Trump is fighting for God!
Trump, not all that civilised?
Honestly, I thought Trump is smart
After all, Trump is not smart
Trump, no job schedule at the White House?
Trump wears faulty dancing shoes
Trump, seeding more problems for the USA for future harvest
Trump, a classical example of a racist
Trump, leading agent of the USA’s economic collapse

The reader might ask: which one is the title of this write-up? The simple answer is this: all of the above, because they all reflect President Trump.

To begin with, I must commend patriotic Nigerians for their deep and sensible reasoning, analysis, and restraint in responding to the utterances of Trump, the President of the United States. The decorum shown under the circumstances is commendable, and this alone serves as a clear answer to Trump and his allies.

On December 18, 2019, the U.S. Department of State added Nigeria to its so-called Special Watch List of governments accused of engaging in or tolerating “severe violations of religious freedom.” Similarly, apart from being watched, Nigeria was placed under Trump’s travel ban in 2020, just a few weeks after the announcement of being on the watch list.

Thank God, Nigeria has never produced a presidential candidate who, at any time—directly or indirectly, during or after political campaigns, online or offline—expressed intent to introduce any policy banning people of a specific faith, Muslim or Christian, from entering the country. Trump did this in America during his 2016 campaign, despite all his assumed level of civilization, positive thinking, and freedom of religion.

In Nigeria, no faith is denied the right to practice, including those who identify as nonbelievers. For any doubting mind, history and records exist to portray our diversity as one people with different beliefs, even before the artificial “independence” of 1960. It is in Nigeria (especially in the North, which Trump does not want to visit) that one can find three different believers within the same family. Is Trump aware of this? Was this fact not included in the complaints presented to him for record purposes?

Nigeria has produced six Christian presidents—both military and civilian—since independence, as well as three Christian vice presidents under democracy, not to mention various military service chiefs and other heads of government institutions. Can all these individuals sit back and watch their siblings being slaughtered and yet remain in government?

I pity Trump. Why? Because even Nigerian Christians whom Trump claims to be fighting for have distanced themselves from such politically, economically, socially, and personally motivated statements. Sensible people ask this question: is this Trump’s agenda, or is he being pushed from behind? Whatever the situation, Trump, as President of a country that calls itself the champion of democracy, should have validated such claims with the accused side. Failure to do so results in fallacy by any definition.

If this assertion is Trump’s own, then he is not smart. If it is pressure from others, then where were the complainants and Trump himself when Maitatsine caused chaos in Kano in the early 1980s? Which faith did the victims belong to? Many lives were also lost in Zaria a few years ago in clashes between Shiites and the military—are they not all from Northern Nigeria? No one heard Trump’s voice then.

Clever, but not smart, Trump! Is he trying to plant another Gaza in Nigeria—or another Serbia under Slobodan Milošević, another Ukraine under Zelenskyy, or perhaps another Iraq under Saddam Hussein, Sudan under Al-Bashir, Libya under Gaddafi, Somalia, Vietnam, or Myanmar?

If Trump is hungry for oil, gas, uranium, or Nigeria’s fertile agricultural land; if he is jealous of our population or seeks to create confusion and division among Muslims and Christians; if he wants to use Nigeria as a testing ground for his unsold ballistic missiles, then he has miscalculated. Nigerians are wiser than before—we are not the same people of the pre-1960s. Our eyes are open.

Trump should not have used religion in Nigeria because our faiths are interwoven. Nigerians can see through the illicit and harmful strategies that have been applied in the country over the years—political instability, currency devaluation through the IMF and World Bank, economic manipulation, and ethnic division—all designed to make Nigeria dependent on foreign education, health, and technology aid. Yet, we remain indivisible. This resilience is one of Trump’s pains, for which no pill brings him relief.

Trump deceived Americans with his “America First” policy. After all, Trump is not genuinely American; his mother was Scottish, and his ancestry traces back to Germany. It is therefore ungrateful for the U.S. government to threaten migrants, because migrants—especially Africans—built America through slavery, brain drain, and forced labor. America still pretends to offer aid through agencies like USAID, which are merely tools for gathering information and sustaining control. Every criminal in the world can find asylum in the USA—what does that portray? It shows that America created, nurtured, and exported corruption to innocent African countries, including Nigeria.

The U.S. has extensive intelligence sources and is aware of every unrest in any country at any time. Why, then, did Trump choose to pick one unverifiable issue and capitalize on it, knowing it could backfire once evidence of other killings across Nigeria emerges? Such actions stem from ignorance, sentiment, and arrogance.

We know that the U.S. dislikes Nigeria’s growing population, its oil independence, and its emerging education and agricultural potential. The aim is to keep us dependent. Trump should first fix his country’s aviation shutdowns, unpaid salaries, and rising poverty before meddling in others’ affairs.

Trump should think about how to recover the wasted billions invested in Ukraine in the name of fighting Russia. If he claims to fight for God, what about the Christians killed in wars supported by the U.S.—in Russia, Ukraine, Gaza, Serbia, Somalia, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, South Sudan, and Yemen?

We are not fools, Trump.

Daily killings and capital punishment in the USA are alarming. How can someone unable to control killings in his own country attempt to dictate to others? Murders occur daily in U.S. schools, malls, and parks, yet Trump lectures others about violence.

Reports indicate that in one year alone, 5,890 murders were recorded in the U.S.—about 16 per day. What faith did these people belong to?

According to research, “The U.S. homicide rate peaked at 10.7 per 100,000 people in 1991 before dropping to 4.7 in 2014. It rose again between 2020 and 2023, reaching 7.75 in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic”—the highest of the 21st century. That was during Trump’s first tenure.

Another report revealed that during the last six months of Trump’s first term, the U.S. federal government executed thirteen people—the highest number of federal executions in 120 years. What faith did they belong to?

Trump’s 2000 book *The America We Deserve* revealed that he opposed gun control, meaning he supports the use of force at will.

For these reasons and more, I recommend that Trump and other Americans who rely solely on media reports travel widely to see the diversity of nations—especially Nigeria—rather than forming opinions from afar.

Is Trump truly a Christian? Many doubt his faith. In a 2017–2021 survey, 63% of Americans did not believe he was religious, and only 44% believed he was a Christian. In 2020, Trump declared he no longer belonged to the Presbyterian Church, his mother’s faith, and now considered himself a “nondenominational Christian.” Whatever denomination he belongs to, he should not use religion for political gain.

Trump’s business empire—spanning real estate, pageantry, media, and technology—has made him lavish and insensitive. He cannot even accept electoral defeat, as the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack showed.

Nobel laureate Paul Krugman once wrote that Trump’s presidency could plunge the world into recession. He called Trump “the mother of all adverse effects.” Indeed, his predictions proved true.

Trump’s second tenure has begun with Nigeria in his sights, eager to enforce the “Country of Particular Concern” label introduced by Joe Biden. Yet he forgets that the U.S. was built by foreigners. His immigration bans, visa revocations, and tariff hikes reveal poor diplomacy.

Trump has eroded trust in America globally. His alliance with figures like Elon Musk exposes money politics at its peak.

Call to Nigerian leaders:
Our leaders must uphold Nigeria’s unity, which others envy. Diversity and unity remain our strengths. The suffering across the country must be addressed, not politicized, because division only empowers outsiders like Trump to exploit us.

Any Nigerian who believes the U.S. means well for them is mistaken. History shows how America uses and abandons its allies, leaving their nations in ruins—Syria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Somalia, and others.

I commend the Nigerian government for maintaining diplomatic composure in the face of Trump’s provocation. This reflects our respect for dialogue and restraint.

My Nigerian brothers and sisters:
We cannot remain silent while being accused of crimes we did not commit. We live peacefully together as Nigerians, regardless of faith. Trump, the “dancing president with faulty shoes,” may one day realize he cannot dance forever.

Rumors of U.S. plans to sanction or attack Nigerian states should alert us all. Is this a plot for another exploitation of our resources?

Conclusion:
Let us not forget: the U.S. thrives on exploiting others’ resources and rarely leaves peacefully once involved in any region. A word is enough for the wise.

I am aware they can come after me, but I would rather die a martyr if my Ummah will be safe. Surely, I expect the first gunshot anytime.

Haruna Adamu Hadejia, MNIM Allahnanan@gmail.com