Popular Islamic cleric, Sheikh Gumi has called for divine retribution on everyone responsible or associated with Nigeria’s kidnapping problem.
In response to the widely shared video of University of Jos student John Arum being kidnapped by gunmen who are seeking N30 million in ransom, he made the comments on Thursday.
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Recall that the UNIJOS student named Arum was kidnapped on route to Kaduna.
Following abduction, a disturbing video of him in hostage went viral on social media, exposing the harsh circumstances of his detention.
In a Facebook post, Gumi claimed that the offenders had lost their humanity.
He added that the nation’s security issue could not be solved by using only physical force.
According to security specialists he referenced, just 25% of counter-insurgency measures should be kinetic, with the remaining 75% being non-kinetic.
“Violence only hardens them; in fact, it is what created them in the first place. I thought that planting empathy in them through correct religious instruction would tame them, most, if not all, not knowing that the violence they exercise is what most people, including some government quarters, believe is the only answer,” he said.
Sheikh Gumi called for immediate, deliberate response instead of what he described as excesses, sentimental judgement, or conspiracy theories, warning that the threat was serious and indiscriminate.
“There is no room or time for abuses, sentimental judgment, or conspiracy theories. The danger is real and anybody can be a victim tomorrow,” he said.
Government too slow
Sheikh Gumi also chastised government agencies for their tardiness, cautioning that the void left by the state’s inaction has made non-state actors potential sources of blackmail.
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He further argued that Nigeria’s security establishment had consistently prioritised military responses over dialogue, mediation, and religious re-orientation.
Gumi consequently issued a curse, saying, “May Allah destroy any person who helped in creating this situation or participated in any form, or neglected his or her duty in saving the situation, or is even happy about it.”
Meanwhile, the abductors have now released a fresh video of the student still in hostage.
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