Nnamdi Kanu Deserves Amnesty If He Repents – Sheikh Gumi

Controversial prominent Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, says he is prepared to lead the campaign for the pardon and release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, if the separatist leader shows remorse and publicly commits to peace.

Kanu is currently serving a conviction on seven counts of terrorism after being found guilty by the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday, Gumi said he remains committed to a non-kinetic strategy for resolving Nigeria’s worsening insecurity and would not hesitate to support an amnesty for Kanu should he repent.

“This Kanu that was imprisoned for terrorism for agitating that our soldiers should be killed — if this same Kanu now will show remorse and also call for peace, honestly, I will be in the forefront in calling for his pardon and amnesty for him,” he said.

The cleric argued that granting pardon to repentant agitators or insurgents is not new in Nigerian history.

He referenced former President Shehu Shagari’s pardon of Biafran leader Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, as well as the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s amnesty programme for Niger Delta militants.

“Shagari… gave amnesty to Ojukwu. Look at Umar Yar’Adua; he gave amnesty to the Niger Delta militants, who have also committed acts of terrorism. So, this is how we are,” he added.

Gumi has long championed dialogue and negotiation with armed groups, especially in northern Nigeria.
He insisted that military force alone cannot end banditry or terrorism.

“We have people who are ready to put down their arms, then why do you always decide it has to be kinetic?” he asked.

He argued that even the most advanced militaries have struggled against insurgent groups.

“Even America could not succeed in Afghanistan, even Israel could not succeed in a small strip of land. Our army is not designed for the guerrilla — no army is designed for the kind of people we are showing now, no army is designed for it.”

While stressing the need for dialogue, Gumi said not all groups are equally open to peace talks.

“If you have been following, the Fulani herdsmen have been calling for peace. When you call them for peace, they come with their guns for many reasons,” he said.

But he questioned whether the same approach could work with IPOB or Boko Haram.

“Can you call IPOB for peace? Can you call Boko Haram? I think the former president has called for peace, and they came, but now it’s difficult to call for peace again. So, anybody who inclines to peace, I’m with him, I’m telling you.”

Gumi’s remarks come at a time when Nigeria is grappling with heightened insecurity, including mass abductions of schoolchildren and worshippers in several states.

In recent weeks, terrorists have carried out multiple attacks across the North-West and North-Central regions, prompting renewed national anxiety.

President Bola Tinubu has ordered security agencies to hunt down the perpetrators, but opposition figures say the administration’s response has been slow and inadequate.