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Controversial Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has alleged that former President Olusegun Obasanjo held a meeting with Boko Haram leaders in Maiduguri, Borno State, as part of efforts to resolve the insurgency.

According to Gumi, the Boko Haram leaders agreed during the meeting to surrender their weapons and end their armed activities.

The Islamic cleric, however, claimed that the Nigerian government later failed to honour its own side of the agreement reached during the negotiations.

Gumi made the allegation in a video while questioning the government’s approach to dealing with armed groups and insurgents.

He expressed concern that authorities have engaged in negotiations with various groups around the world but have consistently ruled out talks with Boko Haram.

“You negotiate with the Taliban, Hamas; you negotiate with everybody you have problems with; why can’t we negotiate with them? So it’s now like a taboo to negotiate with them?

“Look at Obasanjo; he told me this himself that, at the early stage of Boko Haram, he went to Maiduguri where he met with the leaders of Boko Haram and they agreed to lay down their arms.

“And he came back, but the government was reluctant to take action, and he was bitter about that; you can interview him.

The cleric also urged the Nigerian government to focus on resolving the country’s security challenges rather than depending on the international community for solutions.

He said, “Nigeria has to show the international community that this is our baby, this is how we want, and not depending on your ethics and standards.

“The government should not listen to the international community because this is our problem and we have to solve it.

“Secondly, the population- just imagine that I’m trying hard to reconcile and look at how much blackmail and wrong information; what more is the government doing with it?

“The government shouldn’t be blackmailed; that’s what is hindering the government. If I were to be president, I would just come around and give a six-month amnesty window for them to put down their weapons.”

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