IPOB slams Gumi, calls him terrorist

The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has rejected claims by Islamic scholar Sheikh Ahmad Gumi that it was involved in the killing of security agents and burning down government assets in the South East region.

Sheikh Gumi, in an interview on ARISE Television on Wednesday, as published by RELIABLESOURCENG.COM, had drawn a comparison between IPOB on one hand and herdsmen and bandits on the other.

He declared that it was unfair to compare bandits and herdsmen with IPOB, for, according to him, bandits and herdsmen only kidnap people for ransom while IPOB killed policemen and burn down INEC offices.

“IPOB is attacking the police, the army, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other government institutions; killing our men in service.

“And the herdsmen are kidnapping children not to kill them but to get money; so how can you compare somebody who is killing our gallant men directly to somebody who is kidnapping children to make money and not to kill them. Look, we need some fairness in what we are doing,” Sheikh Gumi spewed in his logic.

Reacting, IPOB in a statement, Thursday, signed by its media and publicity secretary, Emma Powerful faulted Gumi, stating that neither the mother IPOB nor the Eastern Security Network (ESN) was a terrorist organisation.

“In case the self-acclaimed Islamic cleric (Gumi) has forgotten, may we remind him that neither IPOB nor ESN is a terrorist organisation or killers like his bandit clients and allies. Spilling of blood is never part of our mandate.

READ: Gumi’s logic: It’s unfair to compare bandits, herdsmen with IPOB

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“ESN is a child of necessity created for the defence of our ancestral land against terrorists and killer herdsmen wreaking havoc across our communities. ESN is only defending our hapless mothers and sisters who have been raped, maimed and attacked without any justification by these criminal herdsmen.

“Since December 2020 when ESN was set up by our leader, these vampires have been on the run because of the heat from our gallant operatives across Biafran forests. For Sheikh Gumi who never gave a hoot while killer herdsmen rampaged our communities to try to twist the fact now is not only mischief but an act of terror itself.

“No Northerner in any part of Biafra land can prove that he/she has at any time been attacked by IPOB or ESN. We are only chasing terrorists and bandits behind killings and kidnapping for ransom in our land.

“Gumi should be ashamed that an Islamic cleric as he claims has suddenly become a mouthpiece for bandits and terrorists. Why does Gumi have special interest in bandits and terrorists is an indication that he is a terrorist but has never shown any empathy to their victims of other Nigerians? Why is Gumi always advocating for terrorists and negotiating with them but never advanced the cause of victims of terror? What does Sheikh Gumi have in common with bandits and terrorists?

“This terror sympathizer wants to lessen the heat on his boys by instigating the security agencies against us. Can you see why Sheikh Gumi should be arrested for investigations and interrogations?

“We want to put the world on notice that Sheikh Gumi is the main sponsor of banditry and terrorism in Nigeria. He should be made to face the consequences of his actions. For holding talks with terrorists and championing their cause, he has a case to answer in the atrocities.

“But we promise Gumi and his likes that no amount of distraction will make us back down on our resolve to restore Biafra, and defend our ancestral land against invasion by criminal herdsmen. We are formidable and we won’t give up on this mandate. ESN will not allow any person occupy our forests again,” the statement partly read.