A member of the Florida House of Representatives, Kimberly Daniels, has accused Nigeria’s Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, of offering a bribe to a United States elected official to suppress a report alleging Christian genocide in parts of the country.
Daniels, a Democrat representing District 14, made the allegation in a video posted on her official Facebook page on Monday, claiming the move aimed to alter the narrative of the United World Congress of Diplomats (UN-WCD) report, which indicts Matawalle.
In the viral video, Daniels stated: “A US elected official was offered money by Nigeria’s minister of state defense, Bello Matawalle, to change the narrative of the UN-WCD Christian genocide in Nigeria report.”
The lawmaker linked the alleged cover-up to escalating attacks in northern states including Plateau, Kaduna, Benue and Nasarawa, particularly around Easter 2026, resulting in deaths and heightened insecurity concerns.
Daniels, affiliated with UN-WCD, vowed to persist despite pressures, having previously urged President Bola Tinubu to sack or redeploy Matawalle over security lapses.
As of Tuesday, Matawalle and the Nigerian government had not issued any public reaction to the accusation, which has trended widely on Nigerian media platforms.
The story broke amid ongoing debates on religious violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, with groups documenting hundreds of Christian fatalities since January 2026.
