Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, said government officials and bandits are same in terms of involvement in criminality.
Gumi stated this by means of a sermon he delivered in Kaduna which chiefly was on the arrest of his publicist and publishers of Desert Herald, Mallam Tukur Mamu, on suspicion of involving in terrorism and cutting deals with terrorists.
The renowned scholar and Mamu have been having open romance with terrorists with latter serving as go-between for victims of abduction and their abductors with regard to ransom payment and securing abductees’ release.
His arrest has drawn censure from Gumi in the sermon on Thursday in which he laid before the public why both were relating with bandits. At a point, he accused the country’s government officials of criminality of bandits’ proportion.
Part of the sermon, “We discovered that people were being killed recklessly in this country, and instead of us to also fold our arms and enter our houses, we decided to go into the bush and see what exactly was the problem, so that we could have peace.
“But everyone came up with their own interpretations; they said we were supporting the bandits. But, was it when we started meeting the bandits that banditry started? We had gathered them, and they were ready for dialogue.
“But to try to link him with a terrorists group in Egypt…. Imagine this type of lie. Is it with lies that you will achieve success?
“Even journalists have their own faults. When they see one of them reigning, they feel let them just taint his image. He has even fought with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) severally. So, what can they not do? They would just be reporting lies.
“Also, because Mamu’s name is tied to me, they will just tag us bad names because they have seen that we are saying the truth. I am not even seeing the fault of the government in this, because even the government is a victim of security conspiracy. Even in the security, I don’t see fault of our people. I see fault of our enemies who killed Sardauna.
“There was a time I went to Saudi Arabia, a Colonel told me that the Nigeria’s Security had told them since 2007 to put me and a Nigerian Governor who implemented Shariah law in Nigeria on the watch list.
“Going to his (Mamu) house in the middle of the night to break into it in a draconian way, shows you are not different from bandits. Bandits too come at night, so where is the difference?
‘Bandits don’t follow the law, if you too break into someone’s house without following the law, how are you different? Bandits have guns, you too carry guns. So if both of you don’t follow the laws, you have become bandits.
“Even of recent, journalist have also started having interviews with them and they are saying they are only revenging killings of their people. To them (bandits), they have not committed any crime, they are only revenging killing of their kinsmen.
“So, what is the solution? Let’s go and dialogue. But those in government said no, they are criminals. But, you that are calling them criminals, are you not criminals?
“There is nobody in government today that you will open his file, that you will not find a crime. But instead of people to own up to their crimes, they would be looking for scapegoats, they would be looking for people to implicate.
“I can almost swear to God that what is happening to our brother (Mamu) is what gave birth to banditry; a situation where security operatives would go to their (Fulani) communities and cheat them, kill their wives and children. That was why they said, is it not guns? We too should acquire guns.
“This gentleman (Mamu) is only helping; he is helping and people are being rescued.
“It was the bandits who appointed Mamu as negotiator because they saw that he is fearless in his news publication. But the question of whether Mamu is making mistakes in his duties as negotiator, it is impossible for him not to make mistakes. But you ought to look at the overwhelming success of his intervention.”
