Gumi Questions Why Leaders Won't Visit Boko Haram, Bandits
Islamic cleric Ahmad Gumi has publicly questioned why government officials refuse to negotiate with Boko Haram and bandits in Nigeria. He argues that past leaders successfully used dialogue to end militancy in the Niger Delta and suggests a similar approach could work in the North.
Why it matters
Gumi's controversial stance highlights the ongoing debate in Nigeria regarding whether to use military force or diplomatic engagement to address internal security threats.
Controversial Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, has questioned why no government official has visited Boko Haram terrorists and bandits to negotiate an end to their violence, the way past leaders engaged Niger Delta militants. He made the comparison in a Facebook post on Saturday, recalling how former President Goodluck Jonathan and former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo both visited militants in the creeks to broker peace. Gumi noted that both leaders had, at different times, gone into the creeks to meet militants and had returned with programmes designed to end the militancy in the region. “The former President Jonathan visited delta militants in the creeks, so also the former vice president Osinbajo. They all came up with a program to tame the militants,” he wrote. The cleric then asked who would extend similar engagement to Boko Haram and bandits terrorising parts of northern Nigeria, without facing public backlash.
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