Stakeholders have called on the federal government to order a transparent and thorough investigation, into the disappearance of Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata, who was abducted from his Kaduna home six years ago.
Addressing a press in Kaduna on Saturday, Country Director of AI Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, said, “His family waited, hoping he would return that night. They waited and waited. From days, to months, to years. Now it’s six years. We are still asking: where is Dadiyata?”
Dadiyata, a university lecturer and vocal social media critic of government policies, was seized by masked men on August 2, 2019, as he returned from work. His whereabouts remain unknown, and no investigation report has been made public despite repeated assurances by security agencies.
Sanusi likened the disappearance to tactics “used by authoritarian regimes to silence dissent,” stressing that human rights are state obligations.
“Even if the government didn’t take him, they failed to protect him. Six years on, there has been no investigation result, no update, no justice — absolutely nothing,” he said.
The event turned emotional as family members narrated their ordeal.
His younger brother, Usman Idris, said their mother died still hoping to see her son again, while an uncle passed away from stress linked to the unresolved case.
“Our father is barely holding on. Our lives have been torn apart,” Usman said.
“My brother was not a criminal. He was a patriotic Nigerian who used his voice for justice.”
His wife, Khadija Ahmad Lame, said their children remain traumatised.
“They keep asking me, ‘Where is Daddy?’ I have no answers. We live in grief every single day,” she said tearfully.
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