Sheikh Gumi Finally Explains Why He Continues to Advocate for Peace Deal With Bandits
- The prominent Kaduna cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, defends his continued advocacy for engaging bandits in dialogue
- The cleric, who said critics calling for his arrest are acting out of ignorance, reveals how he takes major risks meeting gunmen in the forest
- Gumi said he often works alongside government officials during such missions with bandits
Kaduna, Nigeria - There were calls for Nigerian security agencies to arrest prominent Kaduna cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Mahmud Gumi, on suspicion of knowing the activities of bandits.
Critics accused the cleric of having inside knowledge of bandit operations due to his sustained campaign advocating dialogue with armed groups.
Source: Facebook
However, Sheikh Gumi said he was not afraid of being arrested for his meetings with gunmen in an effort to provide security in Northern Nigeria.
In a detailed response on his official Facebook page, the cleric dismissed such accusations as 'ignorance,' insisting that his intervention is purely driven by the worsening security situation across Northern Nigeria.
Gumi: “We take risks you don’t see”
Responding to the uproar, Gumi wrote that his missions into the forests to meet armed groups come with enormous personal risk.
According to him, rather than condemn him, Nigerians should appreciate the danger involved.
“If they had seen the risks we take to meet these gunmen, they would have praised us instead of belittling us,” he wrote.
He stressed that his goal has always been to secure a safe environment for northern communities that have suffered extreme hardship under the threat of banditry.
Why Gumi insists on dialogue
The cleric said his persistent advocacy for a non-military approach is rooted in the realities facing rural northern communities
He said:
"Farmers cannot go to their farms, villagers are being displaced, food production continues to decline, local economies are collapsing."
“We Northerners are the ones affected. We are the ones being harmed. To sit back and watch is not justice to our people or to the government,” he stated.
For Gumi, talking to the militants is not an act of endorsement but a strategic necessity to restore peace.
Gumi reveals government involvement in his missions
In a revelation that may surprise many Nigerians, Sheikh Gumi claimed that his visits to bandit camps are not done in isolation.
According to him, government officials have accompanied him on several occasions, even though the public is not aware.
“We infiltrate the forest with government officials, but the people on the other side don’t know we are working with the government,” he said.
"That's why it seems like we have links with the gunmen. We are trying to show them their mistakes and educate them since we understand that they don't have religious knowledge," said Gumi.
Source: Facebook
He argued that this secrecy has made some Nigerians wrongly assume he has unofficial ties with bandits.
Gumi noted that his objective is to correct the gunmen’s misconceptions and expose them to religious teachings they lack.
Terrorism will end only through education – Gumi
The cleric said that Nigeria’s huge security spending has not produced the desired results and should be partly redirected.
He added that even a fraction of the trillions spent on security annually could fund this approach.
He wrote that “only education, faith, and hope can end terrorism”
Why are people calling for Gumi’s arrest?
Legit.ng reports that debate intensified after Gumi reiterated his long-standing position that negotiation, not force, remains the workable pathway to ending banditry.
His comments angered critics who believe such engagements embolden criminals and weaken military operations.
Some social commentators and activists went as far as urging security agencies to invite or arrest him for questioning.
But the cleric says those pushing such narratives do not understand the nature of his work in the field.
Source: Legit.ng
