Controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has questioned why no government official has engaged Boko Haram terrorists and armed bandits in dialogue, compared to peace efforts by former President Goodluck Jonathan and former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in the Niger Delta.
In a Facebook post on Saturday, Gumi recalled that Jonathan and Osinbajo visited militant camps in the Niger Delta and later introduced programmes that helped curb 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,” Gumi wrote.
He questioned who would be willing to adopt a similar approach to address the insurgency and banditry in northern Nigeria.
“Who is going to visit BH and Bandits to tame them without fools castigating them?” he asked.
NPO Reports recalls that over the years, he has visited bandit camps in a bid to dialogue, saying the engagements were aimed at understanding the grievances of the armed groups and encouraging them to lay down their weapons.
The retired army officer has repeatedly denied supporting terrorism, insisting his advocacy is focused solely on ending bloodshed through dialogue, rehabilitation and reconciliation.
NPO reports that Jonathan first met with Niger Delta militants in 2007 while serving as vice president, holding talks with ex-militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, in the creeks of Warri, Delta State.
Similarly, Osinbajo also visited Niger Delta communities in 2017 as acting president, meeting with militants, traditional rulers and community leaders.