Gregory Stuebe, the lawmaker who represents Florida’s 17th congressional district in the US House of Representatives, has proposed an amendment bill to withhold assistance to Nigeria until it prevents terrorism in the country.

Proposed on Wednesday, the bill, agreed to by lawmakers who cast a voice vote, seeks to increase the reduction of assistance from 50 per cent to 100 per cent

The move will remain in effect until the US Secretary of State certifies that Nigeria has taken “effective steps to prevent and respond to violence and hold perpetrators accountable”.

Steube said, “I rise in strong support for my amendment to increase the withholding threshold for assistance to Nigeria, from 50 per cent to 100 per cent. While keeping in place benchmarks that demand Nigeria take effective steps to address the violence and persecution that continue to devastate the country.

“Nigeria has faced a horrific wave of violence that its corrupt government has failed to address.

“For years, and especially in recent months, Christians and other religious minorities in Nigeria have been subjected to violence and terrorism at the hands of extremists operating with impunity.

“Christian women and girls continue to be abducted, assaulted, tortured, and killed. Their churches are burned, and entire communities are erased.

“If the aid conditions included in the bill are important enough to withhold half of all the funding to the Nigerian government, then they are important enough to withhold all of the funding.

“The generosity of our taxpayers is a reflection of the American values we hold so firmly. 
Never should we allow their hard-earned tax dollars to be funnelled to corrupt regimes that fail to uphold religious freedom, fail to adequately confront terrorism, and fail to protect the innocent from persecution.

“So, why are we rewarding a government that fails to meet such a basic obligation?”

Steube criticised the issuance of foreign aid to Nigeria, especially when America’s debt nears $40 trillion. He rather advised that such funds should be redirected to defend and uphold American values.

The bill was agreed to by the House months after President Donald Trump declared Nigeria to be a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) over Christian genocide claims