A top Nigerian media aide has publicly questioned the stance of prominent Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, following Gumi's controversial call for the government to sever military ties with the United States.
The debate stems from confirmed US airstrikes against terrorist targets in Sokoto State. While US officials hailed the operation as successful, Sheikh Gumi issued a strong condemnation, framing the strikes as a "neo-Crusade" and advising President Tinubu's administration to "immediately halt military cooperation with the United States." He suggested that if Nigeria requires foreign military assistance, it should turn to nations like China, Turkey, or Pakistan instead.
Olayinka's Skeptical Response
Reacting to Gumi's position, Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Adviser on Media to the FCT Minister (and former media aide to ex-Governor Nyesom Wike), expressed skepticism. In a post on his official X account, Olayinka suggested Gumi's statement was revealing. He pointedly noted that the cleric's admission "was suspicious," implicitly questioning the motives behind Gumi's sudden pivot from advocating for dialogue with militants to criticizing foreign military intervention against them.
Olayinka's remark references Gumi's well-documented history of acting as a mediator, frequently calling for amnesty and peace talks with bandit groups across the north. By highlighting this contrast, Olayinka's comment frames Gumi's opposition to the US strikes not as a principled stance on sovereignty, but as a potentially self-serving position aligned with the interests of the very groups targeted.
The exchange underscores the deep political and ideological divisions within Nigeria regarding how to combat terrorism, pitting advocates for kinetic military action—including foreign support—against those who favor negotiation and view external intervention as a dangerous escalation that compromises national sovereignty and fuels religious polarization.
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