Outspoken lawyer and human rights activist, Malcom Omirhobo, has launched a blistering verbal assault on the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, accusing him of willful silence and complicity in the ongoing wave of ethnic killings in Northern Nigeria particularly in Plateau State.
In a series of posts on his X account (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Omirhobo questioned the Sultan’s moral authority, accusing him of failing to speak out against the atrocities allegedly perpetrated by Fulani militias against other ethnic groups. “You are a terrorist to democracy and your feudal days are numbered,” Omirhobo declared.
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“Why are you pretending not to know that the cause of the genocide going on in the North is all about land? How can you say that the people responsible for the killings in the North, particularly Plateau, Benue and Borno are unknown?”
The activist did not stop there. He issued a public challenge to the Sultan, demanding proof of any past condemnation of Fulani-instigated killings.
“I challenge the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, to show me anywhere where he has or had condemned his fellow Fulani men for killing Nigerians of other ethnic nationalities and I will show him a whale in the Sahara desert,” Omirhobo said.
His remarks come amid recent killings over land disputes and incessant clashes between nomadic herders and farming communities, especially in central and northeastern states.
While various reports and witnesses have pointed fingers at armed Fulani groups for much of the bloodshed, official statements often refer vaguely to “unknown gunmen” or “bandits.”
Omirhobo’s accusation that the violence is a disguised land-grabbing campaign echoes long-standing concerns in states such as Plateau and Benue, where farming communities claim they are being forcibly displaced by violent militias under the cover of religious and ethnic conflict.
“The narrative of unknown gunmen is a convenient excuse to avoid confronting the truth,” Omirhobo asserted. “The people being attacked know their attackers.
The silence of prominent leaders, especially those who wield spiritual and cultural authority, is aiding and abetting these crimes.”
The Sultan of Sokoto, regarded as the spiritual leader of Nigerian Muslims, has often been viewed as a voice of moderation and peace.
However, critics like Omirhobo argue that his silence or ambiguity in the face of ethno-religious violence is damaging and must be challenged.
The remarks by Malcom Omirhobo have called for pressing need for justice and transparency in Nigeria’s conflict-ridden regions with society groups are now calling for a broader dialogue and open condemnation of all forms of violence, regardless of who is involved.
Meanwhile, Omirhobo remains unapologetic. “This is not about religion or ethnicity. It’s about truth and justice. And if speaking out makes me a target, so be it,” he concluded.
