Islamic cleric, SheikhAhmad Gumi has said that no individual or group can restrict his movement within Nigeria amid claims that he was linked to an alleged Islamisation agenda in Oyo State using northern ideological influence.
He stressed that his visit to the South-West city was not at the invitation of any Muslim organisation or person in the region.
In a post shared on his Facebook page on Tuesday, the cleric explained that he travelled to Ibadan as a representative of a coalition of northern Islamic scholars.
His clarification comes after a victim of a kidnapping incident in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State dismissed claims that a.bductors demanded the implementation of Sharia law as part of conditions for their release.
The controversy surrounding Gumi’s visit intensified following online discussions linking him to reports that k!dnappers who a.bducted school pupils and teachers in Oyo State on May 15, 2026, allegedly made demands interpreted by some as related to Sharia law provisions.
Responding to the allegations, Gumi said he was being wrongly drawn into local political narratives in the South-West.
Gumi said: “I quite understand now how Islampobia is shaping politics in SW and why I was unnecessarily dragged into their dirty local politics.
“I was in Ibadan not by the invitation of any SW muslim individual or group but as a representative of the coalition of northern muslim Ulama.
“Can anybody stop me from going anywhere in Nigeria? I believe the whole saga is tele-guided by both foreign and local interests to promote a narrative and polarise the country.”
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