Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, has warned that any United States involvement in Nigeria’s counterterrorism operations could worsen the country’s insecurity by drawing in foreign terrorist organisations.
Gumi made the claim in a Facebook post on Monday, May 18, where he argued that external military support in tackling insurgency and banditry could undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty and escalate violence rather than contain it.
He maintained that Nigeria’s armed forces are capable of addressing the security challenges if given the right operational framework, particularly clear and fair rules of engagement.
According to him, reliance on foreign intervention would expose the country to unnecessary risks and deepen instability.
Gumi said, “As a peace advocate, I am stunned by some remarks from ignorance that the military was or is prevented from engaging bandits or Boko Haram. This claim is false and malicious.
“Never for one second has the military halted hostilities in the name of Amnesty against unrepentant terrorists except the Niger Delta militants who got a blanket Amnesty from Yar’Adua of blessed memory.
“Today, almost 17 years since 2009 when Muhammad Yusuf was summarily executed extra-judicially, Boko Haram has remained a thorn in the throat of Nigerians killing high-ranking officers.
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“The gross failure of the kinetic approach is chiefly attributed to the morality of our fighting force.
“Until, innocent people are safe from our excesses in the application of the kinetic approach and our hands are not stained with the blood of innocent people, the war is going to erode our sovereignty which it has already.
“The military can handle the situation if the rules of engagement are free from prejudices and deception, both in the application of force and finances.
“The involvement of the USA will only attract the international terror groups to the ‘new arena’ exposing Nigeria to an unnecessary increase in violence, in which these same foreign forces are complicit.”
He further criticised Nigerians who support foreign intervention, describing them as lacking national consciousness and willing to compromise sovereignty.
Gumi said, “Nigerians especially a section of them are not just gullible but have a slave mentality ever ready to hand over the sovereignty of our dear nation to foreign interests.
“We have to resist foreign subjugation and disgrace,” he warned.
His comments come amid ongoing debates over Nigeria’s counterinsurgency strategy, particularly calls for international cooperation versus reliance on domestic military capacity.