Controversial Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has announced that religious leaders can no longer broker peace negotiations with bandits, blaming the federal government’s hardline approach for the deadlock.

Speaking in a viral video, the scholar criticized the decision to officially declare the gunmen as terrorists. Gumi, who previously visited armed groups in their forest hideouts to facilitate dialogue, warned that the designation would backfire and escalate violence across the country.

“We don’t want to push them into terror beyond what they are doing now because it can get worse,” Gumi said. “They have shown us their willingness to negotiate. So people that are ready to negotiate, why are you rushing to declare them bandits so that you can use whatever weapons you bought?”

The cleric claimed that armed groups in Zamfara State previously assisted local authorities by capturing Boko Haram insurgents. He argued that labeling all criminal factions as terrorists has destroyed those internal rivalries and united them against the state.

Gumi concluded that the government`s stance has eliminated any peaceful resolution. “The only door that is remaining is for us clergy to go in and negotiate with them—that is closed permanently,” he said.