By Marie-Therese Nanlong

Jos – The Convener of The Alternative, Otunba Segun Showunmi, has cautioned Nigeria’s leadership over the deteriorating security and humanitarian situation in the country, disclosing that the United States is now treating the crisis with exceptional gravity.

Showunmi made this known following a high-level engagement with Congressman Riley Moore, a senior member of the U.S. Congress actively involved in shaping American policy concerning Nigeria.

In an internal briefing, he revealed that Washington’s current assessment of Nigeria is marked by a firm and highly focused concern, driven by developments on the ground.

According to him, U.S. authorities have held wide-ranging consultations with Nigerian government officials, civil society actors and policy experts both in Washington and locally.

These engagements, he said, have led to the conclusion that violence and instability in parts of Benue, Plateau, Southern Kaduna, the Middle Belt and among moderate Muslim communities in the North have gone beyond routine security challenges.

Showunmi noted that the humanitarian consequences of the unrest have attracted growing international attention, with the situation increasingly viewed as a deep-rooted structural crisis rather than a temporary political problem.

He stressed that while the United States is prepared to assist Nigeria, such support is conditional on clear evidence of commitment and seriousness from the Nigerian government.

He warned that political deflection, denial or blame-shifting would not be accepted, adding that the Presidency may be underestimating the scale of the problem. This, he said, risks widening the gap between official narratives and citizens’ lived realities.

The briefing further identified fragmented communication, rising ethnic rhetoric and inconsistent messaging as factors damaging Nigeria’s credibility. Showunmi urged urgent recalibration through transparent acknowledgment of the crisis, unified national communication and a clearly articulated response strategy.

He cautioned that failure to act decisively could allow external actors to shape Nigeria’s narrative, stressing that faith must be matched with responsible leadership in this critical moment.