Sheik Ahmad Abubakar Gumi, an Islamic expert, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to achieve appropriate appeasement of the Fulani people before stepping down in May.
Gumi was a resource person at the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore Socio-Cultural Festival's ongoing two-day First Interactive Policy Dialogue and Cultural Festival, which has the theme "The Future of Fulani Pastoralists in Nigeria."
The Fulanis, according to the Islamic scholar, have been unfairly demonised and feel estranged.
Those who indulge in abduction and banditry, which have worsened security circumstances in both the North West and North-Eastern parts of the country, he claimed, would abandon their arms if there was discussion and a genuine commitment to peace.
The Islamic scholar has specifically requested that the Muhammadu Buhari administration establish a Ministry of Nomadic Affairs to address herder-farmer conflicts.
He also urged that appropriate monies be provided for the bandits, in the trillions of dollars, to equal the appeasing of Niger Delta insurgents with the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.
"When we arrived, the children who were killing and kidnapping people opened their doors readily to us because they heard we were going to teach the gospel; all they want to do is talk," he claimed.
Send them individuals they respect to converse with, and by God's help, they will listen, and the situation will be solved.
"Everyone, including the bandits, is to responsibility for their acts." They believe that the world has progressed and left them behind, despite all the injustices that have been meted out to them.
How do we resolve this? We must walk among them, embrace them, and ensure that they receive everything they deserve. They are wreaking havoc on agriculture, and villages have been displaced because they believe they, too, have been displaced from their homes.
"We are at war, and the remedy is what the government did for the people of the Niger Delta, how it gained them justice and even gave them a ministry; why can't the government do the same for us?" Hospitals and education will be inclusive and empowering.
"When you meet with them, they still have respect and act like everyone else; we need to join together, politicians, security agencies, traditional and religious leaders, and aid them."
They are behaving out because they have been pushed to the limit and have never received genuine support since Nigeria's creation.
"Now collect all of their money and hand it over to them." Calculate how much you've given to the Niger Delta region since the agitations began; I've heard it's in the billions; the Fulani want theirs; gather all their money and give it to them; I'm calling on the President to hand over the money before you leave office; meet with their leaders to get to them.
Only 0.1 percent of Fulanis are peace-loving, and they are wreaking devastation not out of malice, but because they have been pushed to the limit.
"To get a positive outcome, we must engage these people; my only concern is the infiltration of terrorists into their midsts; it's an issue we must really examine, and even the terrorists themselves, I believe there is neglect." Boko Haram has not yet shown to be a hopeless situation, thus we must defend our ranchers from their infiltration."
Sheik Gumi, on the other hand, warned the Nomadic Pastoralists to cultivate the habit of living in peace with non-Fulanis and non-Moslems, noting that killings of innocent individuals were against the Holy Quran's and Prophet Mohammed's teachings.
"We have a treaty with all non-Muslims in Nigeria to live in peace, which was reached with the colonial masters and is renewed every time we elect members of the House of Assembly, so no Muslim has the right to injure or kill any non-Muslim in this country under the treaty, and the Prophet has instructed us not to kill any soul with whom we enter into a treaty of peace, and we have agreed constitutionally to stay in peace with all non-Muslims
Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, the Governor of Kebbi State and Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, voiced alarm over what he called Nigerians' blame game over the country's security challenges.
He stated that cooperation across areas would benefit in overcoming the country's security concerns.
"I congratulate you, the association's leadership. I came because of the significance I place on the organisation. I value the presence of Fulani from other countries because it allows us to exchange our experiences. This will be a dialogue rather than a monologue.
"We must look for local solutions in addition to what the government is doing." In Kebbi, for example, we invest in agriculture while also mobilising resources for pastoralists.
"The crisis will not go away or be solved by assigning blame. Anger isn't going to help. People still cast accusing fingers at pastoralists, although they, too, are victims of livestock rustling.
Although it is a West African issue, major solutions are required. President Buhari has expressed his dissatisfaction with this, and we must work to ensure that our governors and national parliament speak out in support of local and sub-regional solutions.
Professor Yusuff Usman, the former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), believes that engaging local leaders, rather than military action against bandits, can solve the problem of banditry and kidnapping.
"The Fulanis, the Nupes, and the Hausas will not leave Nigeria!" Isn't it true that we're fighting Fulanis in a civil war today? Why? We must all join in the fight to find a solution. Everyone must be involved. "Bandits are being painted on us!"
In his opening remarks, Alhaji Bello Abdullahi Bodejo, the Association's National President, announced that participants at the summit include Fulanis from 16 African countries.
" is intended to discover long-term solutions to Nigeria's insecurity challenges, with the goal of holding a meeting with Fulani in 16 neighbouring countries to see if the insecurity situation in Nigeria affects them as well.
Why is Nigeria going through this if they aren't affected? We'll also visit the Republic of Niger. We'd also travel to the woods to meet and learn more about what's going on.
There are 16 delegates from 16 countries in the region. We'll publish a document on the way forward after this meeting."
Before leaving office, Buhari must placate Fulanis, according to Sheik Gumi.