Kaduna-based Islamic cleric Ahmad Gumi has confirmed his invitation by the Department of State Services over some comments he made on the activities of bandits.
According to him, the invitation was necessary, and he had a productive interaction with the security agents who queried him.
In a social media post on Tuesday, hours after the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, said security agencies have summoned Gumi, the Islamic cleric said his engagement with security agencies on how to curb the menacing trend of banditry.
The minister had said nobody is above the law and if found guilty, Gumi would be reprimanded.
In his post titled, ‘Only one person is above the law: the innocent’, Gumi said, “Last night I got many frantic calls from well-wishers and journalists about a news item that I was interviewed by security. There is absolutely no cause for alarm.
“Yes, we had a productive interaction on how to curb banditry as we are all trying – each in his own sphere – to tackle the monster bedeviling the nation.
“There was no animosity but courtesy and full of respect. We all need as a nation to unite and work in synergy to achieve an everlasting peace.”
Gumi ran into a fresh crisis with security agencies last week when he said they have no right to declare any Nigerian a terror financier. The cleric had reacted to a recent list by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), declaring his close associate, Kaduna-based publisher, Tukur Mamu, and 14 others as terror sponsors.
The cleric had also offered to negotiate with bandits for the release of 137 pupils abducted on March 7, 2024 from the Chikun Local Government Area of the state by marauding bandits in Kaduna State.
Gumi had also said the government should negotiate with bandits but the minister and Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, insisted that no ransom was paid for the release of the schoolchildren and that Gumi was not involved in the safe return of abducted Kuriga pupils.
