The Human Rights Writers Association (HURIWA) of Nigeria has urged the Federal government to arrest and prosecute the Kaduna-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, over what it described as his consistent defence of terrorist activities in northern Nigeria.

The group’s National Coordinator, Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, accused the cleric of offering “moral and propaganda support” to armed groups operating in the North-West, particularly those it identified as “largely Fulani terrorists.”

The group said Gumi’s public remarks over the years, including his calls for dialogue and amnesty for bandits, amount to an open endorsement of violence that has claimed thousands of lives across the region.

HURIWA criticised what it termed the Federal government’s selective application of counter-terrorism laws, contrasting Gumi’s freedom with the prolonged detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, who has been held for a decade over his separatist campaign.

“It is morally wrong that the federal government continues to detain Kanu for advocating self-determination, while ignoring a Kaduna-based cleric who publicly campaigns for amnesty for mass murderers,” Onwubiko said in a statement.

The group urged President Bola Tinubu to demonstrate even-handedness in enforcing the law, reminding him that Nigeria’s Terrorism (Prevention) Act, first enacted in 2011 and amended in 2013 and 2022, prescribes the death penalty for certain terrorist offences.

HURIWA further stressed that while the law protects the right to free speech and peaceful protest, it does not shield individuals who promote or justify acts of terror.

Known for his outspoken advocacy of negotiations with armed bandits, the cleric has often argued that dialogue, rather than military force, is the only sustainable solution to banditry in the North.

His stance has divided public opinion, with some viewing him as a mediator seeking peace, and others accusing him of legitimising terrorism.

HURIWA’s latest demand reflects growing frustration among civil society groups over the government’s handling of insecurity in the region.