Sheikh Gumi Speaks on Attacks in Nigeria: "Kidnapping Children Lesser Evil Than Killing Soldiers"
- Sheikh Ahmad Gumi described the kidnapping of schoolchildren as a lesser evil than killing soldiers and urged dialogue with bandits
- More than 315 people including 303 students and 12 teachers were abducted in Niger State with some released or escaping days later
- Gumi said the military alone cannot end banditry and stressed that most bandits are Fulani herdsmen engaged in an existential struggle
Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has stirred nationwide controversy after describing the kidnapping of schoolchildren as a “lesser evil” compared with the killing of soldiers, insisting that dialogue with bandits remains Nigeria’s most realistic path to peace.
Speaking in an interview with the BBC published on Tuesday, December 9, Gumi said that while abducting minors is “evil and unacceptable,” it is comparatively less grievous than murder, especially in cases where children are eventually freed unharmed.
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“Kidnapping children is a lesser evil than killing your soldiers. Killing is worse, but they are all evil. It is just a lesser evil. Not all evils are of the same weight,” he said.
He pointed to past incidents, including the mass kidnapping in Kebbi State, where victims were released alive, as justification for his argument.
“So it is a lesser evil, like what happened in Kebbi. They abducted children, and they were released. They didn’t kill them,” he stated.
Concerns rise after Niger State mass abductions
Gumi’s comments come amid renewed concerns following the abduction of more than 315 people in Niger state, including 303 students and 12 teachers, in one of the most recent mass kidnappings.
The Federal Government announced the release of 100 students on 7 December, while an earlier report confirmed that 50 others escaped days after the attack.
When asked what message he had for the victims’ parents, Gumi replied only:
“It’s an evil, and we pray that they escape.”
Cleric insists negotiation ‘is unavoidable’
Addressing criticism of his repeated calls for dialogue, Gumi argued that negotiations with outlaws are a global practice, dismissing claims that the government should not engage with bandits.
“That phrase ‘we don’t negotiate’, I don’t know where they got it from. It’s not in the Bible. It’s not in the Quran.
“In practice, everybody negotiates with outlaws and non-state actors. We negotiate for peace and our strategic interests. If negotiation will bring an end to bloodshed, we will do it," he said.
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He stressed that he did not hold secret or unofficial talks with bandits in the past.
“I go there with the authorities. I don’t go there alone. And I go there with the press,” he added.
Gumi revealed that his last direct meetings with bandit groups were in 2021, saying he attempted to unite various factions for peace, but the Federal Government at the time “was not keen.”
He withdrew completely after the groups were designated as terrorists.
Military overstretched, Gumi says
Turning to Nigeria’s broader security crisis, the former army captain argued that the military cannot single-handedly defeat banditry.
“We need a robust army… but even the military is saying their role in this civil unrest and criminality is 95 per cent kinetic. The rest is government, politics, and the locals. The military cannot do everything,” he said.
He also insisted that most bandits are Fulani herdsmen, not urban Fulani, and that their struggle is tied to survival and cattle ownership.
“They are fighting an existential war… Their life revolves around cattle. In fact, they inherit them. They’ll tell you, ‘This cow I inherited from my grandfather.’ They are mostly Fulani herdsmen, not the Fulani in town,” he explained.
Gumi’s remarks have reignited debate over the balance between enforcement and negotiation in tackling insecurity, particularly in the northwest, where banditry, kidnappings and rural violence continue to devastate communities.
Source: Legit.ng
