Nigerian Christians have been 'forgotten' by western churches, says Frank Wolf

Former Congressman Frank Wolf urged the U.S. government to look back on the Nigerian Christians, who felt abandoned and forgotten by the West, including Christian churches.

"People of faith, Christians, feel very much forgotten. Nigeria is fractured and is breaking down in so many ways, and it seems that the world has forgotten about it," the retired legislator told The Christian Post in a phone interview.

"They feel abandoned by the West, and by the Church in the West," stated Wolf. "You are not hearing many in the West advocating (for them). They would expect that the faith community in the West, Europe, would be advocating, speaking out."

Wolf, Virginia's longest serving congressman, visited the African country in February as part of a delegate team of religious freedom advocates and as a Distinguished Senior Fellow of the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative.

Wilberforce, which aims to promote religious freedom across the globe, exposed the alarming conditions of Nigeria in its report "Nigeria: Fractured and Forgotten."

Among the recommendations to address the insurmountable plight of the Nigerian people is to include the need for a Special Envoy for Nigeria and the Lake Chad Region. According to the report, this envoy should be adequately staffed and resourced as it would serve as the key interlocutor, engage in multi-stakeholder agreement and handle the vast issues of refugees, IDPs, economic development, security, justice and peacebuilding.

The report also slammed Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's claims that his government already defeated Boko Haram, the militant group that even surpassed the Islamic State terrorist group as the most destructive last year. The world's fourth most destructive terrorist group, the Fulani militant herdsmen, also belongs to Nigeria.

Church leaders and human rights groups already raised concerns that the incessant attacks by the Muslim Fulani herdsmen, widely-believed to be buoyed by Boko Haram, on Christian villagers may soon erupt into a state of civil war.

Wolf warned it would be catastrophic to neglect the largest African country with 180 million in population.

"The impact for the rest of the world will be unbelievable," said Wolf.