Activist demands arrest of cleric over alleged bandit sympathy

Activist lawyer Deji Adeyanju has called on the Nigerian government to immediately arrest controversial Islamic cleric Ahmad Gumi over allegedly inflammatory comments defending bandits. In a viral video circulating this week, Gumi reportedly stated that 'Fulani herdsmen are going nowhere, they are part of us and we are part of them. We must live with them.'

On his Facebook page, Adeyanju declared that 'terrorist sympathizers should be treated as terrorists,' adding that 'people like Gumi can only survive in a country without a government.' He accused Gumi of promoting terrorism and called for his arrest to serve as a deterrent to others.

The comments come amid rising security tensions across Nigeria, with ongoing conflicts between herders and farming communities. Religious and community leaders have often found themselves at the center of debates on national security and identity politics. Should public figures who express views sympathetic to groups labeled as 'terrorists' face criminal charges, or does this cross into suppressing legitimate dissent?

SOURCE: https://dailypost.ng/2026/05/20/arrest-ahmad-gumi-immediately-adeyanju-tells-nigerian-govt/