Nigeria’s Defence Minister, Lt Gen Christopher Musa has warned Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmed Gumi and others against framing bandits and terrorists as part of any northern “brotherhood,” insisting that such rhetoric amounts to complicity in crime.
In a statement released on Wednesday in Maiduguri, Musa said Nigerians must draw a clear line between lawful society and criminality, declaring: “A friend of a thief is a thief.”
The minister stressed that the remark was neither casual nor symbolic, but a direct response to past comments attributed to Gumi, who has described armed bandits hiding in forests as “our brothers” and suggested that society cannot function without them.
Musa said while compassion has its place, portraying or justifying violent groups only emboldens criminal networks that have ravaged communities, displaced families and claimed innocent lives across the country.
“Labelling bandits as brothers does not reduce violence. It legitimises it and undermines national security efforts,” he said.
His comments come amid continuing attacks in the north-west, including a recent incident in Katsina State in which two people were killed and several others abducted during a wedding ceremony, prompting fresh scrutiny of the language used around banditry and terrorism.
The Defence Minister warned that terrorism does not thrive on weapons alone, but also on “moral cover,” adding that anyone who excuses, defends or shields criminals, whether through words, influence or silence, shares responsibility for the consequences.
Nigeria, he said, cannot defeat banditry and terrorism while public figures blur the distinction between victims and perpetrators.
“In matters of national security, neutrality is not an option,” he said.
READ ALSO: Police Decline Comment on US Air Strikes in Sokoto