₦airaland Forum

Controversial Islamic Scholar, Ahmad Gumi on Monday described the kidnapping of school children by bandits as lesser evil.

Gumi said kidnapping school students was a lesser evil when compared to the ransacking of towns and killing of its residents.

He made the remark while featuring on BBC Pidgin.

The cleric also stated that his meetings was yielding positive results as bandits are now careful about human lives.

According to Gumi: “Kidnapping children from school is a lesser evil because in the end, you can negotiate and now bandits are very careful about human lives.

“Before, the mission of bandits was to go into a town, ransack it and kill people. By this, I can say our preaching is working and hopefully, we are coming to an end of banditry in Zamfara and other states.

“Bandits are more careful about lives now and just want to do sensational attacks which would bring attention to themselves.”

Lately, the activities of banditry has been on the rise in the Northern part of Nigeria.

Recall that Gumi had appealed to the federal government to grant amnesty to bandits.

The Islamic Scholar had said amnesty to bandits would help calm down the tensed insecurity situation in the North.

Buhari has, however, vowed not to grant amnesty to bandits.

Hunters, others rescue seven travellers in Ondo, kill gang member
Luck ran out of a suspected kidnapping syndicate yesterday at Akunu-Akoko, in Akoko North-East Local Government Area of Ondo State, as a local vigilante and hunters’ group killed one of the bandits terrorising the area.

The group also rescued seven victims abducted by the unknown gunmen in the forest who was snatched on Saturday while travelling to the northern part of the country.

According to sources, the gunmen stopped the victims’ vehicle at a boundary community between Ondo and Edo states. They said people in the area noticed the empty vehicle and suspected the occupants of the vehicle had been abducted.

Witnesses said the travellers were heading towards Abuja when they were abducted and taken into the bush.

One of the sources said the incident was reported to the regent of the town, Princess Tolani Orogun, who ordered local hunters and vigilante team to comb the entire forest and secure the release of the kidnapped victims.


According to him, the exercise yielded result as the kidnappers were rounded up in their den after a gun duel between the criminals and the local hunters.

He added that the hoodlums ran away while one of them was shot dead, revealing that some of the kidnappers also ran away with bullet wounds as the seven abducted victims were rescued unhurt.

The Police Area Commander in charge of Ikare-Akoko, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Razak Rauf, confirmed the development.

Rauf noted that the seven victims had regained their freedom while the body of the kidnapper killed in the encounter had been deposited at the State General Hospital morgue in Ikare-Akoko.

Influential Islamic cleric, Sheikh Abubakar Gumi, said on Saturday that the kidnapped Kagara schoolchildren might be released today.
Bandits, donning military uniform, had around 2am on Wednesday invaded Government Science College, Kagara, Niger State and whisked away 27 pupils and 15 staff members after killing a Senior Secondary School 3 pupil.

The incident has created nationwide agitation and worries over the safety of the kidnapped pupils and school staff members, who were whisked away into the bush by the bandits.

In an interview on Saturday, Gumi, who has been in talks with the bandits in the forest, toldSunday PUNCHthat there was a possibility that the abductees might regain freedom today, given ongoing talks between the government and the bandits.
The cleric, who recently held a parley with some bandits in Zamfara State forests and consequently called for amnesty for bandits, told one of our correspondents that the negotiation for the release of the schoolchildren and members of staff was slowed down due to logistics.

According to Gumi, the negotiation does not involve payment of ransom.
Speaking on the phone with one of our correspondents on Saturday, Gumi said,
“What I hear from (our contact) is that they are still negotiating to release them (schoolchildren and staff members) and hopefully, hopefully, we will get them today (Sunday), hopefully.

“Up till now, they have not been able to identify the boys, who (did the kidnapping). You know they are splinter groups. So, when you are dealing with groups like that in a vast area, with no communication, no road, then it has to be slow. But the main actors are ready to negotiate and stop the kidnapping altogether.”

Asked if the negotiation involved money,
Gumi said, “No, no; it does not. If it involves money, it means the same criminality.
They are saying these are our conditions and we will stop this thing. So, negotiation is ongoing and their demands are being looked into, which are very simple.”

According to Gumi, the bandits are mainly asking the state to release their comrades in the custody of security agencies.

He explained, “They have just four people in detention and they are asking for them.
They also need assurance and that is why we are calling for amnesty for them.
They have been fighting for a long time; it’s been more than eight years.

“These people are fighting for their existence because when they go to town they are lynched, when the police see them on the road, they arrest them; sometimes they are executed extrajudicially, so they took arms against the state.
When you give them amnesty, all of them will drop their weapons.”

Nbotee:
If U weren't exposed as liars during the kankara boys season 1, I'm sure U ppl will have had so many episodes already from dis Kagara season 2

The Management of Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education has confirmed the death of a senior lecturer, simply identified as Mr Echetama, who slumped and died in a lecture hall on Tuesday.

The Acting Public Relations Officer of the college, Mr Joseph Okwulehi, who confirmed the death to newsmen in his office on Wednesday, said the Provost of the college is engrossed in a series of emergency meetings over the issue.

He said the management has advised the staff and students of the institution to be calm and wait for the official position of the institution on the issue.

“I can confirm to you that a senior lecturer slumped in a classroom on Tuesday and was confirmed dead at the Federal Medical Center, Owerri.

NAN reports that Echetama, until his death, was a senior lecturer at the Department of Business Education.

Meanwhile, the development has forced students to keep away from lectures over an emerging rumour that the sudden death of the lecturer was connected to COVID-19.

Students were seen on Wednesday vacating school hostels, while others fled the school premises for the fear of contracting the dreaded virus.

Some of the students who spoke to NAN said they decided to avoid lectures when the rumour emerged that the lecturer died of Coronavirus complication.

A final year student of the institution, Mr Frederick Anyawu, said the development has forced lecturers to suspend lectures.

He said students decided to keep away from the college until the issue is sorted out.

Another student in the department of economics, Mr Okechukwu Eze, said the development has caused skeletal activities in the institution.

NAN

tillaman:
Lie Mohammed living up to his name as he is famed for his numerous lies and we all know his butthole does the thinking for him!!
Slob

Fahdiga:
Imagine this two fools that should have been sacrificed to the gods competing on whose ass is the first to be drilled. 'spits'. What a disgusting thing did I hear? if I'm related to any one of them I would have used him for money ritual and donate the money to charity. Tufiakwa