There have been more calls for the Department of Security Service (DSS) to release the teenager, Walida, who was allegedly abducted by one of its personnel, Ifeanyi Onyewuenyi, from Jigawa State.

Recall that Walida was stated to have gone missing in 2023, when she was 16-years-old. But despite a court order and calls by several groups for her release, the DSS has held on to the girl.

Walida went missing in 2023, and it was in December 2025, that her father received a call informing him that his daughter was in Abuja and with Ifeanyi, who had gotten her pregnant and that she was nursing his child.

It was gathered that Ifeanyi said he would not release her to her family as he was planning to marry her. The development caused the family to approach a court in Jigawa State and it ordered the release of Walida to her parents and the prosecution of the DSS operative.

FOWMAN, others call for independent investigation

A coalition, which includes The Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN), Women in Da’awah (WID), among others, under the aegis of Concern Coalition for Walida Abdulhadi, yesterday warned the Department of State Security (DSS) against blocking an independent investigation into the alleged abduction of the teenager.

At a press conference in Abuja, the group said the DSS cannot fairly serve as investigator, defender, and final authority in a matter involving its own officer.

Speaking on behalf of the coalition, Ustaz Yunus Salahudeen, said strong institutions do not fear investigation, but welcome it because “truth vindicates the innocent and corrects wrongdoing where it exists”.

He maintained that the DSS could not be a judge in a case directly involving its staff.

He noted that the development is a deeply troubling one.

“This sequence creates the perception of a cover up exercise capable of influencing public opinion while judicial processes remain pending. We approach this matter from the standpoint of constitutionalism, humanity, and justice. Our concern is not anchored in religious rivalry or sectarian sentiment. Rather, it is grounded in the fundamental principles that govern any civilised democratic society,” he said.

While calling on the DSS to let due process take its course and allow the truth to emerge through constitutional mechanisms, he said justice will be pursued without fear or favor.

Salahudeen also asked why the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) was not included in the committee constituted to review the matter, given its statutory responsibility in cases involving minors in particular and trafficking in general.

Furthermore, he criticised how public discourse has shifted following the presentation of Walida as being 22 years of age.

“Earlier reporting, including by Premium Times, and consistent statements attributed to her father indicated that she was 16-years-old at the time she allegedly left home. The distinction between 16 and 22 is not cosmetic, it is legally decisive. If she was 16, the matter squarely invokes child protection laws and heightened legal safeguards. If she is presented as 22, the case is reframed as one involving an adult capable of independent decision-making.

“The apparent transformation of her age from 16 to 22 demands independent documentary verification through birth records, school records, or other lawful documentation. Age cannot be established through media declaration,” he said.

He added that any attempt, perceived or real, to alter the age narrative without transparent verification risks undermining public confidence in the process.

“Parental and guardianship rights are legally recognised and cannot be set aside except through due judicial process. Where a court of competent jurisdiction has issued directives, compliance is not discretionary. Obedience to court orders is the backbone of constitutional governance,” he said.

He warned that in a religiously sensitive country such as Nigeria, mishandling such a matter carries implications far beyond the immediate parties involved.

Walida was born in 2008 – Father

Earlier, while speaking to Daily Trust, Walida’s father, Mal Abdul-Hadi Ibrahim, said the most troubling words he heard during the meeting he had with the DSS officials was that Walida was born in 2004.

“I got married to her mother in 2007 and she was born in 2008, which means she was 16 when she was abducted and currently 18. Maybe they want me to die just like the mother did due to sadness.

“They even said I will kill her if she follows me because she converted to Christianity. But why will a father do that to the child he suffered to nurture? I am a Muslim and Allah forbids us to take a life. Why would I do that to a child who went missing for two years and I don’t know the trauma she has lived through these years?” he said.

He further appealed to the Jigawa State governor to intervene in the matter.

“I want the governor of Jigawa State to help me because this humiliation is not just for me but the entire Muslim ummah,” he said.

Lawyer writes DSS, alleges cover up

A human rights activist has petitioned the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) over the alleged abduction, sexual abuse and unlawful custody of a minor.

In a detailed letter on Monday, Hamza Nuhu Dantani, Esq., a constitutional lawyer and member of the Citizens’ Liberty Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, expressed concern about what he described as a “desperate, calculated, and coordinated attempt to cover up a case involving a minor.”

According to the petition, Walida was abducted in 2023, while she was a Senior Secondary School II (SS 2) student.

Her father has repeatedly stated publicly that his daughter was and remains a minor.

“These facts have never been controverted with credible evidence,” the petition notes.

Dantani raised an alarm over a recent publication by Weekend Trust, which featured an interview granted by Walida. According to him, the interview appeared designed to protect the DSS operative, Ifeanyi.

The interview, he explained, “artificially suggests that Walida is 22-years-old and that she only encountered the operative after reaching 18 in 2024, creating a narrative intended to shield him from criminal liability”.

“To further muddy the waters, the script introduces a so-called Mariam, alleged to have abducted Walida, taken her to a house in Hadejia, and repeatedly sexually molested her. She was scripted to claim she stayed with Mariam until 2024, after which she was taken to Abuja,” Dantani wrote.

The activist criticised the narrative as legally incoherent and factually insulting, emphasising that Walida was in SS 2 in 2023, which typically places her age between 13 and 15.

“Even under generous assumptions, she would have been no older than 17 in 2025”, he said.

Dantani further noted that Walida gave birth to a baby girl in 2025, allegedly fathered by the DSS operative.

“This incontrovertibly establishes that sexual intercourse occurred at least nine months earlier, at a time when Walida was still a minor. No amount of legal gymnastics, scripted interviews, or intervening stories of a ‘faceless Mariam’ can erase this reality,” he wrote.

The activist accused the DSS of conflict of interest.

“How can the DSS claim neutrality when the principal suspect is its own operative, thereby making the Service a judge in its own cause?” Dantani asked, urging the immediate release of Walida to her parents or lawful guardians.

iting Nigeria’s adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Child Rights Act 2003, the petition emphasised the legal protections afforded to minors.

It referenced provisions mandating that, in all actions concerning a child, the interest of the child must be the primary consideration.

The law also requires that children be provided with the protection and care necessary for their well-being, taking into account the rights and responsibilities of parents or legal guardians, who are tasked with offering guidance and direction in the exercise of the child’s rights.

The petition further highlighted that children are entitled to freedom to practise their religion, the right to privacy and protection from media exposure, and the right to be free from physical, mental, or emotional harm, sexual abuse, degrading treatment, or attacks on their honour, all of which are explicitly enshrined in law.

Dantani stressed that the DSS is not legally empowered to withhold a child from her parents, and that retaining Walida in “safe custody” while allowing media exposure constitutes a violation of both the letter and spirit of the law.

He called for the intervention of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, gender-protection agencies, and the Jigawa State government to ensure the child’s welfare.

“If this case is left for the distraught father to pursue alone, justice may never see the light of day,” the petition warned, framing the matter as a test of Nigeria’s commitment to child protection, the rule of law, and institutional accountability.

Dantani concluded his petition by urging the DSS to release Walida to her parents, transfer the investigation to an independent authority, and allow relevant child and gender-protection agencies to secure her welfare.

Earlier court order

Recall that in January, a Magistrate Court in Jigawa State had ordered the arrest of the DSS operative and release of Walida to her parents.

In the court order dated January 7, 2026, the magistrate directed the Commissioner of Police, Jigawa State Command, or senior officials of the DSS, to arrest the respondent, identified as Ifeanyi Festus (Onyewuenyi), and discreetly investigate the alleged offences pursuant to Sections 125 and 102(5) of the Jigawa State Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL).

But the DSS in a statement said it is yet to release Walida because the Service has applied to the court to have the order vacated.

The statement, which was signed by its Deputy Director, Public Relations and Strategic Communications, Favour Dozie, said a hearing on the matter will hold soon.

Also speaking to Weekend Trust last week, the DSS insisted that Walida was in “protective custody”.

Following fresh calls for her release, Daily Trust reached out to the DSS for its reaction, but it was yet to respond as at press time. (Daily Trust)

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