Activists ask FG to investigate ‘disappearance’ of Dadiyata

Access to Justice (A2Justice), an organisation that focuses on judicial reforms, has asked the federal government to investigate the disappearance of Abubakar Idris, a social media influencer better known as Dadiyata.

In August 2019, Dadiyata, a critic of the government, went missing, with reports claiming that he was abducted by armed men while driving into his residence in Kaduna.

Security operatives were alleged to have been responsible for his disappearance, but the Department of State Services (DSS) has since refuted the allegations.

August 30 marks the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances — a day set aside to create awareness for those who have been arrested, detained, abducted or denied fundamental human rights by state actors, without any form of acknowledgement.

Commenting on the commemoration, A2Justice, in a statement on Monday, asked law enforcement and security agencies to respect the convention for the protection of all persons against enforced disappearance in Nigeria.

The organisation narrated how Glory Okolie, a 22-year-old lady, was detained for eight weeks by the police for allegedly being friends with a suspected member of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

A2Justice said the “disappearance” of Dadiyata over two years ago has caused “uncertainty, unease, silence and grief” for his family members.

“While Gloria’s whereabouts has now been discovered, it is not so for Dadiyata. August 2021 makes it two years since his abduction, and two years of uncertainty, uneasy silence and grief for family and friends of the activist,” the statement reads.

“This is what enforced disappearance looks like; its intent is to create fear and panic in people. Gloria Okolie and Abubakar Idris are two persons out of a long list of people who have involuntarily disappeared. It is estimated that several thousands of people have involuntarily disappeared in Nigeria.

“The convention for the protection of all persons against enforced disappearance, strictly prohibits the ugly act. However, this has not stopped governments and other political actors who continue to use it. The most at risk persons are human rights defenders, political opposition, lawyers and witnesses.

“Access to Justice is committed to supporting victims and their families in the quest for justice, especially persons who were ‘made to disappear’ after the #ENDSARS protests, those who have disappeared in the North East in the course of the war against terrorism, and persons who have disappeared in the South East in the course of the clampdown against the Indigenous People of Biafra/Eastern Security Network.

“We therefore: Call on the government to ensure that all cases of enforced disappearance are thoroughly investigated and to ensure that justice is carried out for the victims; call on law enforcement and security agencies to respect the Convention for the Protection of all Persons against Enforced Disappearance which Nigeria is a party to, as well as the provisions contained in the Administration of Criminal Justice Act and the Police Act.”