By Sandra Ugwu 

Several influential groups and stakeholders across Nigeria have accused the Federal Government of lacking the political will required to decisively defeat terrorism, following recent remarks by Islamic scholar Sheikh Abubakar Gumi that authorities know the identities and locations of terrorists operating in the country.

Gumi’s claim, made during an interview with DRTV, has sparked nationwide debate, with many security experts, activists and regional leaders insisting that the government must act on available intelligence and prosecute sponsors of terrorism. The President of the Ijaw National Congress, Prof. Benjamin Okaba, described the allegation as “grave and troubling,” warning that if the government truly knows the identities of terrorists but fails to act, it raises serious questions about complicity and vested interests within the system.

Similarly, the Coalition of Northern Groups urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to identify and prosecute individuals financing terrorism, stressing that criminal networks sustaining banditry and insurgency must be dismantled. The group noted that Nigeria already possesses the security institutions needed to confront terrorism but requires transparency, accountability and strong political resolve to bring perpetrators to justice.

The Middle Belt Forum also supported Gumi’s assertion, with its National President Dr. Bitrus Pogu stating that security forces have long known the locations of bandits and insurgents. He warned that the persistence of attacks may be due to either a lack of political will or infiltration of security institutions by sympathisers of insurgent groups.

Other commentators, including legal practitioners and security analysts, echoed similar concerns, insisting that decisive action against both terrorists and their sponsors remains the only path to restoring public confidence in Nigeria’s security architecture.