Islamic cleric Sheikh Gumi warms against violent crackdown on Fulani herdsmen and bandits

CONTROVERSIAL Muslim cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has urged the Nigerian government not use force against Fulani cattle herdsmen and armed bandits currently terrorising the country saying that doing so will only stiffen their resolve.

Nigeria is currently facing a chronic insecurity crisis as terrorist groups like Boko Haram and Islamic State of West African Province (Iswap) are running riot on the northeast of the country. With 6m illegal firearms now in Nigeria, other criminals who are having a field day include Fulani cattle herdsmen, kidnappers, armed bandits, rapists and armed robbers.

Earlier this year, Sheikh Gumi went to meet with several bandits in Zamfara State and tried to urge them to enter into negotiations with the government. Earlier today, he insisted that Zamfara State is unique in many aspects a in early 2000, it adopted sharia law and shortly afterwards, 11 other northern states followed suit.

Sheikh Gumi said: “However, it goes without saying, that the international community ruled by leaders that are promoting sodomy and lesbianism in the garment of secularism were at the forefront of fighting it but in a short time, it became political and fizzled away. If such sharia implementation move had concentrated in literacy and economic empowerment the kind of which we see in Saudi Arabia, with its rich resources, Zamfara would have become a shining example of the blend of a religiously modern state proud of its development and modesty.

"Unfortunately, it turned out to became the den of criminality and instability in the region and from the blues, in 2009 cattle rustling became rampant. Most of the cattle rustled were headed to the south in trailers where they are sold and slaughtered and this massive movement of rustled cattle greatly reduced their population.

"Most of the rustling first affected the rural herdsmen and it became more elaborate in the north-western region. Herdsmen were left with only one of three options, to join the rustlers or pay tribute to rustlers for protection or lose their cattle.

"In 2014, the military intervention in the Birnin Gwari Forest to fight cattle rustling changed the headsmen into a resistance movement as many innocent Fulani Ruga settlements were murdered, men, women, and children in hundreds. By 2015, banditry has replaced cattle rearing that is becoming nearly impossible."

He added that profiling of Fulani herdsmen became another motivating factor of more resistance and more kidnappings which has now led to their metamorphosis into the monster the nation is facing today. According to Sheikh Gumi, with the Fulani's acquisition of weapons, they realised how easy it became to be masters of their abode the forest, where no authority can venture into, which emboldened them to further attack people for more ransoms to sustain their newfound reality.

Sheikh Gumi added: “Let us face the reality, these herdsmen are going nowhere and they are already in battle gear and we know our military very well, so before things get messy, we need cold brains to handle this delicate situation. It’s commonsense that if you allow your neighbours to be your enemy you are already conquered because they can easily be used against you by other forces as we see now the herdsmen are ultimately used to destabilise the region, pauperise and even depopulate it.”