Human rights lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, has said Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi risks up to 20 years imprisonment under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, over comments allegedly perceived as promoting terrorism.
Adeyanju stated that the law does not only punish individuals who physically carry out terrorist attacks, but also criminalises acts capable of encouraging, justifying, promoting, or supporting terrorism and terrorist groups.
According to him, the Act broadly defines support to include incitement, ideological encouragement, public advocacy, dissemination of materials capable of advancing violent causes, and moral or verbal backing for persons engaged in acts of terror.
He specifically cited Section 13 of the Act, which criminalises soliciting for, rendering support to, or associating with terrorist groups, adding that the punishment could extend to imprisonment for a term of not less than 20 years.
Adeyanju said the provisions of the law have raised questions among Nigerians over what he described as a “double standard” in the treatment of Sheikh Gumi and detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
“The Federal Government has consistently argued that Kanu’s broadcasts and public comments amounted to incitement and support for unlawful violence, forming part of the basis for his prosecution under anti-terrorism laws,” he said.
“It is therefore not out of place to argue that Sheikh Gumi’s repeated public defence of armed bandits, his sympathetic rhetoric towards violent groups, and comments perceived as excusing or rationalising their atrocities should equally attract serious legal scrutiny under the Act.”
Adeyanju further argued that the law should apply equally to all Nigerians irrespective of ethnicity, religion, or political affiliation.
“In a country like Nigeria, where bandits and terrorists have massacred innocent citizens, displaced communities, and destabilised entire regions, the law must be applied equally, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or political alliance,” he added.
