Obasanjo, Gumi meet privately , want special courts for bandits

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and a prominent religious leader in the North, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, have recommended special courts to try bandits and kidnappers promptly.

Both Obasanjo and Gumi stated this in a jointly signed communiqué issued after a closed-door meeting at the Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, on Sunday.

Gumi, who led some northern religious leaders to Obasanjo’s residence in Abeokuta, arrived around 11am and left at 4pm.

He declined to speak to newsmen when asked the reason for his visit.

But in a 21-point communiqué jointly issued by Obasanjo and Gumi, they urged the Federal Government to take the issue of insecurity up within the Economic Community of West African States.

They also recommended that whistle blowers against insecurity must be protected and rewarded.

The statement read partly, “The Federal Government should take the issue up seriously within ECOWAS to work for a regional solution.