Tinubu Government Lied; I Was Never Deported From Nigeria – American Missionary, Alex Barbir
American missionary, Alex Barbir, has strongly denied claims by the Bola Tinubu government that he was deported from the country, describing the allegation as false and misleading.
Barbir, reacting hours after reports of his alleged expulsion surfaced, insisted that he remained in Nigeria and had not been officially removed by authorities.
In a series of statements, he dismissed the government’s position and challenged officials to provide proof of any deportation process.
“Two hours before my flight, I’m live on Newscentral. DSS attached to me during my mission for protection. Round trip flights. Zero official deportation letter. Embassy never informed of any such desire. These lies only expose the evil in power in Nigeria. See you soon!” he said.
He further refuted claims attributed to Abiodun Essiet, the Senior Special Assistant to Bola Tinubu on Community Engagement (North Central), who had earlier stated that Barbir was expelled over alleged inflammatory remarks.
“FALSE: If Abiodun Essiet made this statement, they are directly lying to the Nigerian and international community. I’ve never heard of this person, nor had conversation with them. US Embassy denies such claim,” Barbir said.
Escalating his response, Barbir accused Essiet of deliberately spreading falsehoods and attempting to mislead the public about his status in Nigeria.
“Why have you disgraced the Tinubu government by openly lying about me? @AbiodunEssiet Without any shame you lie to the world. As Nigerian security forces were attached to me, you claim I was deported. Shame on you. The Embassy will be in touch,” he added.
He also noted that the American embassy denied such development.
“US Embassy denies any such deportation. Any deportation of a US citizen must go through the embassy, of which none was made. If such a statement is true, it shows the Nigerian government is intentionally lying to both Nigeria and the international community.”
The denial comes in response to earlier remarks by Essiet during a television interview, where she claimed that the government had taken decisive action against the missionary.
“Yeah, so we’ve realised what Alex Barbir has done, so I must inform that Alex Barbir is no longer in Nigeria,” Essiet said. “He has been, we can say, removed and sent out of the country because of the work he’s doing, which is creating division.”
She further alleged that Barbir’s statements incited unrest, linking his speech in Jos, Plateau State, to subsequent violence.
“Immediately after he made his speech in Jos, a lot of people didn’t know that two people, two Muslims, were killed immediately after his speech. Because of the impact of this provocative speech, which he has been making, he was sent out of the country and is no longer in Nigeria,” she said.
Essiet also defended the government’s actions as preventive, warning against the dangers of divisive rhetoric and drawing parallels with the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
“That’s what the government has done, because we don’t want individuals to come and create division,” she said, adding that Nigeria must avoid narratives that could fuel ethnic or religious conflict.
