Sheikh ahmad gumi biography of abraham lincoln
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His radio broadcasts, translations of Islamic texts into Hausa, and reformist teachings influenced millions. Critics view this as ethnic partisanship rather than neutral peacemaking.
Anti-Shiite Stance
Gumi has criticized Nigeria’s Shiite Muslims (particularly the Islamic Movement of Nigeria led by Ibrahim Zakzaky), viewing Shiism as deviant from Sunni orthodoxy.
Western Education
Unlike Boko Haram, Gumi supports integrating Islamic and Western education, though he emphasizes Islamic knowledge’s primacy.
Personal Life
Gumi maintains residences in both Nigeria (Kaduna) and Saudi Arabia, where he spends extended periods.
He is currently the Mufti and Mufassir (Qur’an interpreter) of Kaduna’s Sultan Bello Central Mosque. Born on October 1, 1960, in Kano State, Nigeria, Sheikh Gumi is the eldest son of the late Sheikh Abubakar Mahmud Gumi, a respected Islamic scholar who served as the first Grand Khadi of the old Northern Region. It’s stupidity doing the same thing and expecting different results.”
“Negotiations work, war doesn’t” (December 2024): Gumi insisted: “They say negotiations don’t work.
As the son of the respected scholar Sheikh Abubakar Gumi, Ahmad Gumi combines religious scholarship with public medicine and community outreach.
Early Life and Education
Ahmad Gumi was born on October 1, 1960, in Kaduna State into a family with a strong Islamic scholarly tradition. His media representative Tukur Mamu (editor of Desert Herald) accompanied him—Mamu himself has connections to Ansaru, raising suspicions about the missions’ true nature.
Subsequent Missions: Gumi continued entering forests, negotiating releases of kidnapped victims, and advocating for amnesty programs similar to the Niger Delta militant amnesty.
The Controversial Statements
Gumi’s most incendiary statements include:
“Kidnapping children from school is a lesser evil” (2021): Gumi argued that school kidnappings, while wrong, are “lesser evil” than killing soldiers because children can be negotiated for and returned.
His father’s legacy profoundly shaped Ahmad’s life, providing both extraordinary opportunities and immense expectations.
The Gumi Dynasty
The Gumi family represents a dynasty of Islamic scholarship spanning generations:
Grandfather Mahmud: An Islamic scholar and alkali (judge) in Gummi village (now in Zamfara State), who provided his son Abubakar’s foundational Islamic education
Father Sheikh Abubakar Gumi: Born in 1922 in Gummi village, Abubakar Gumi became Nigeria’s first Grand Khadi of the old Northern Region, serving under Premier Sir Ahmadu Bello.
He has also been accused of making inflammatory remarks, while he maintains that his aims are for peace and justice.
Personal Life
Sheikh Gumi is noted for his calm demeanour, strong faith, and commitment to peacebuilding. There, he was introduced to Fiqh and read books and praised poetry about the Prophet.
The first secular school he attended was Dogondaji Primary School, where he met Ibrahim Dasuki, the future 18th Sultan of Sokoto, and excelled in religious responsibilities.
His income sources are typically associated with religious teaching, lecture fees, and occasional medical work earlier in his career. Gumi accepted the challenge with ease, and the movement’s northward goal was curbed.
Awards
He was awarded the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic. His willingness to risk his life entering bandit camps—whatever one thinks of the wisdom or morality of doing so—demonstrates conviction rare among religious leaders who typically offer commentary from safety rather than confronting danger directly.
As Nigeria continues grappling with bandits, Boko Haram, kidnappers, and various armed groups, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi’s controversial experiment in faith-based conflict resolution will remain central to debates about how Nigeria should respond to its gravest security crisis since the Biafran War.
Only time will reveal whether he’s been Nigeria’s most misunderstood peacemaker or its most dangerous enabler of terrorism.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Sheikh Ahmad Gumi? Sheikh Ahmad Gumi is a 64-year-old Nigerian Islamic scholar, former military captain, and current Mufti of Kaduna’s Sultan Bello Mosque.
This Saudi education deeply influenced his theological orientation, aligning him with Saudi-style Salafism emphasizing scriptural literalism, rejection of traditional Sufi practices, and adherence to the Salaf (early Muslims) as models.
His years in Saudi Arabia also connected him to Saudi religious establishment and international Islamic networks that would later support his work.
Religious Leadership and Ministry
Mufti and Mufassir at Sultan Bello Mosque
Upon returning to Nigeria, Gumi assumed his father’s former position as Mufti and Mufassir at the Sultan Bello Central Mosque in Kaduna—one of northern Nigeria’s most important mosques.
His negotiations with armed bandits in northern Nigeria have attracted both praise and criticism.
He became known for entering forests and bandit camps to negotiate peace and urge militants to surrender their weapons, promising them that Allah would forgive them if they repented. Sheikh Gumi has also been actively involved in peacekeeping missions in northern Nigeria, aiming to reduce violence and promote dialogue between opposing factions.
Conflicts
Abubakar Gumi has issues about the administrative and religious leadership provided by emirate officials in Northern Nigeria.
Despite the controversy surrounding him, he is a prominent religious leader who advocates for national unity, justice, and security. It worked with militants in Niger Delta creeks. He received Saudi Arabia’s King Faisal International Prize in 1987 for translating the Qur’an into Hausa.
Son Ahmad Gumi: Inherited his father’s scholarly mantle, continuing the family’s Islamic leadership while charting his own controversial path
This lineage gave Ahmad automatic credibility and access within northern Nigeria’s Islamic establishment that most scholars spend lifetimes trying to achieve.
Education and Military Service
Formal Education
Ahmad Gumi received his secondary education at Sardauna Memorial College (SMC) in Kaduna—one of northern Nigeria’s premier secondary schools.
These missions involved:
January 2021 – Sabon Garin Yadi Forest (Kaduna): Gumi, accompanied by the Kaduna State Commissioner of Police (representing the Inspector General of Police), met with over 600 bandits and their commanders. As Mufassir, he delivers Qur’anic exegesis (tafsir), particularly during Ramadan when his tafsir lectures attract thousands.
His Ramadan Tafsir sessions became legendary, drawing crowds who appreciated his direct style, his use of contemporary examples, and his willingness to address controversial issues from Islamic perspectives.
Continuing His Father’s Legacy
Like his father, Ahmad Gumi:
However, his approach has proven more controversial than his father’s, particularly regarding his engagement with armed groups.
The Bandit Negotiations: Peacemaking or Appeasement?
Background: Northwestern Nigeria’s Insecurity Crisis
Since approximately 2011, northwestern Nigeria (particularly Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Niger, and Sokoto states) has experienced escalating violence from armed groups locally called “bandits.” These groups:
The Nigerian military has conducted operations against these groups for over a decade with limited success, as bandits operate in vast forests spanning multiple states.
Gumi’s Peace Missions (2021-Present)
Beginning in February 2021, Sheikh Gumi embarked on controversial peace missions, entering forests across Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, and Niger states to meet directly with bandit leaders.
He was eventually moved to a school in Ambursa, Sokoto province, where he was taught by a Malam named Musa.
Nowhere… 16 years we’re still fighting Boko Haram and 11 years fighting bandits.