Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has threatened legal action against Professor Zacharys Anger Gundu, Vice Chancellor of the University of Mkar, following controversial comments linking the governor to the alleged protection and empowerment of armed foreign Fulani herders.
The row stems from statements made by Prof. Gundu during a NewsCentral TV townhall meeting held in Makurdi on July 10. During the live event, the academic accused Governor Sule of allegedly allocating land and offering protection to foreign Fulani herders involved in violent attacks across Nasarawa and neighbouring states.
Reacting to the allegations, a letter dated July 22 and issued by the Abuja-based law firm Ahmed Raji & Co., on behalf of Governor Sule, condemned Prof. Gundu’s remarks as “defamatory, baseless, and inciting.” The legal team demanded a public retraction and apology from the professor, warning that failure to do so would lead to legal action.
“Your statements, broadcast nationwide, have not only tarnished our client’s reputation but also endangered public peace,” the letter stated, calling the accusations “a reckless and unfounded attack on a sitting governor.”
During the townhall, Prof. Gundu argued that many of the herders behind ongoing conflicts in the Middle Belt region do not actually rear cattle but purchase them from markets such as Potiskum in Yobe State. He alleged that these individuals graze on land forcibly seized from indigenous communities, particularly in Tiv-dominated areas of Doma, Obi, Awe, and Lafia local government areas.
As of the time of filing this report, neither Prof. Gundu nor the University of Mkar has issued any official response to the threat of legal action.
The development has sparked debate across social and traditional media, with some calling for a broader investigation into the root causes of the Middle Belt crisis, while others have cautioned against statements that could inflame ethnic tensions.
