Kaduna Survivors Unite: Coalition Demands Justice for Victims of El-Rufai Era Abuses
A powerful coalition of survivors, victims’ families, and civil society groups has emerged to demand full accountability for alleged human rights violations during the eight-year governorship of Nasir el-Rufai in Kaduna State, vowing “no more impunity, no more silence.”
The Kaduna Victims’ Coalition, comprising community leaders, traditional rulers, academics, lawyers, journalists, and other professionals, issued a press statement on Monday calling for thorough investigations and prosecutions of alleged crimes committed between 2015 and 2023.
At the heart of their demands are high-profile cases that have come to symbolize what the coalition describes as an era of unchecked impunity. Among them is the October 2018 abduction and brutal murder of HRH Dr. Maiwada Raphael Galadima, the Agwam Adara (paramount ruler of the Adara Chiefdom), who was killed despite a ransom payment. The coalition notes that suspects arrested for his murder have yet to be successfully prosecuted, and their whereabouts remain unknown.
Equally prominent is the case of Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata, a lecturer at Federal University Dutsenma and social media commentator who was abducted from his Barnawa residence in Kaduna on August 2, 2019. Nearly seven years later, his whereabouts remain unknown. August 2026 will mark the seventh anniversary of his disappearance, triggering a statutory presumption of death under Nigerian law.
The coalition highlighted a controversial tweet posted by Bashir el-Rufai, son of the then-Governor, on December 23, 2019, shortly after Dadiyata’s abduction, which was “widely perceived as gloating over the incident and dismissing calls for his safe return.”
“We speak today as representatives of countless individuals, families, and communities who endured eight years of profound hardship, terror, fear, and loss,” the coalition stated. “These acts bypassed constitutional safeguards and Nigerian law, turning gubernatorial immunity into unchecked impunity.”
The coalition accused the former governor of presiding over “a pattern of indiscriminate actions: arbitrary abductions, persecution of critics, reprisal violence, unlawful demolitions of homes, mass dismissals of workers without due process, forced sackings by employers of perceived opponents, and the displacement of citizens into exile.”
Expressing concern over recent attempts to “reframe this history, portraying Nasir el-Rufai as a champion of due process and human rights,” the coalition insisted that survivors and families continue to seek truth and justice.
“On behalf of ourselves, and in solemn memory of those killed or disappeared who cannot speak, we have a moral and civic duty to bear witness,” the statement read. “Our sole demand is accountability under the rule of law: thorough, independent investigations; prosecutions where evidence warrants; and closure for traumatized victims and families.”
The coalition pledged full cooperation with law enforcement agencies, judicial bodies, and human rights institutions, offering to provide testimonies, evidence, and material assistance to support inquiries.
The statement was accompanied by hashtags #JusticeToElrufai, #JusticeForKadunaVictims, #WhereIsDadiyata, and #AccountabilityNow.
The statement was signed by the following individuals and organizations on behalf of the coalition:
1. Chidi Anselm Odinkalu
2. Audu Maikori, Esq
3. Gloria Ballason, Esq
4. Steven Kefas
5. Luka Binniyat
6. Midat Joseph
7. Segun Onibiyo
8. House of Justice
9. Community Development & Rights Advocacy Foundation
10. Resilient Aid and Dialogue Initiative
11. Southern Kaduna Indigenous Progressive Forum (SKIPFo)
12. Atrocities Watch Africa (AWA)
The coalition’s emergence represents a significant moment in the quest for accountability in Kaduna State, as victims and their families publicly break their silence on alleged abuses that have long remained unaddressed.