Controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has questioned the failure of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration to engage Boko Haram insurgents and bandits through dialogue, as former President Goodluck Jonathan and former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo did with Niger Delta militants.
Gumi raised the question in a Facebook post on Saturday, July 25, 2026, while recalling how Jonathan and Osinbajo personally visited militants in the Niger Delta creeks before introducing initiatives aimed at ending the prolonged insurgency in the oil-rich 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 then questioned why the same approach had not been adopted to address the worsening insecurity in northern Nigeria.
“Who is going to visit BH and Bandits to tame them without fools castigating them?” he asked.
Gumi has consistently advocated dialogue with armed groups operating in Nigeria’s North-West and North-East, arguing that negotiations, rather than military action alone, could provide a more sustainable solution to the violence.
Over the years, the cleric has visited bandit camps in states including Zamfara, saying his engagements were aimed at understanding the grievances of the armed groups and encouraging peaceful resolutions.
His position has remained controversial. While critics accuse him of legitimising criminal groups responsible for killings, kidnappings and other violent crimes, his supporters argue that some of his interventions helped secure the release of abducted victims.
The retired military officer has repeatedly denied supporting terrorism or banditry, maintaining that his advocacy is focused on ending bloodshed through dialogue, rehabilitation and reintegration.
The Federal Government’s Niger Delta Amnesty Programme was introduced in 2009 under the late President, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and continued under Jonathan. The programme involved the disarmament of thousands of militants in exchange for vocational training, stipends and reintegration support, leading to a significant reduction in attacks on oil installations.
Jonathan had earlier engaged Niger Delta militants while serving as Vice President, including a visit to the creeks where he met former militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo. He later said the meeting helped lay the foundation for the amnesty programme.
Osinbajo also visited Niger Delta communities in 2017 while serving as Acting President, where he met with militants, traditional rulers and community leaders.
At the time, he defended the engagement, saying those in the creeks were Nigerian citizens with legitimate grievances that needed to be addressed alongside security measures.
