International human rights lawyer, Emmanuel Ogebe, has petitioned the Government of the United States of America (USA), seeking wide-ranging sanctions on some high-profile government officials in Kano State over the ordeal of “Christian orphans abused & islamized by Kano state commissioner, spent third Christmas in captivity while she and her family reportedly vacationed in USA.”

In the petition, Ogebe, Principal Partner of US Nigeria Law Group and Special Counsel, Justice for Jos Project, listed those to be sanctioned to include Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development Kano State, Dr. Zahrau Muhammad Umar and her family; Kano State Police Commissioner Mr. Habu Sani; Governor Abdullahi Ganduje’s family; and an operative of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Mr Misbau Iyya Kaura.

Below is the text of the petition addressed to US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, entitled, “Kano State Commissioner’s vacation in USA while holding Christian orphans in detention for third consecutive Christmas”:

“We’re gravely concerned to learn that, in addition to the Governor of Kano State’s visit to the US last month, his Commissioner for Women Affairs also vacationed there as well.

“Like Governor Ganduje, Commissioner Zahrau Umar is wholly undeserving of a U.S. visa based on disturbing reports of child abuse, human rights abuses and religious freedom abuses amongst others.

“Over a dozen children unjustly taken away from two Christian mission orphanages in Kaduna and Kano spent yet another Christmas in a Muslim orphanage in Kano while the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development Dr. Zahrau Muhammad Umar and her children reportedly enjoyed Christmas in America.

“In a Christmas day raid, 19 children were first seized from the Kano branch of Du Merci orphanage and taken to Nassarawa Orphanage Kano on 25th December, 2019. Some of the children have remained in Kano State’s custody for two years now and marked their third Christmas in captivity last month on Dr Zahrau Umar’s orders.

“The Police and NAPTIP, a United States tax-payer funded agency, traveled to the Du Merci Orphanage in Kaduna state where another eight persons were abducted on 31st, December, 2019. Some of them also marked two years captivity on New Year’s Eve barely two weeks ago.

“Confidence, Peace Snr., Devine, Comfort, Destiny Jnr., Destiny Snr, Sarah and Elizabeth were taken around 4.30 pm to Women Affairs Office in Kaduna and kept in a Lite Hiace bus with criminals whom NAPTIP had arrested for several hours before setting off to Kano by 8.00 pm. They were denied food despite the cries of the traumatized children throughout the journey to Kano.

“On arrival at Bompai Police Station Kano around 12.15 am on 1st January, 2020, they were kept in a reception hall without mosquito netting or windows and they suffered hunger, cold and mosquito bites throughout the sleepless night of anguish and crying.

“It was in the morning around 9.00 am that the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) DSP Mati on resuming duty found out that NAPTIP brought eight people from Kaduna to his office in Kano.

“DSP Mati reportedly chided NAPTIP officer Misbau Iyya Kaura whom he earlier engaged in a confrontation not to bring them from Kaduna to Kano. At that point DSP Mati promptly sent for bread and tea which the eight captives couldn’t eat due to lost appetite from prolonged hunger and trauma.

“Despite DSP Mati’s outrage for the way they were maltreated, they remained at Bompai Police station till around 6.00 pm in the evening without eating food for over 26 hours since they were taken from Kaduna.

“They were also transferred to Nassarawa Orphanage and the adult captives told to fill forms with their names, ages, etc while the Police men filled the forms for the minors. At this point it was officially on record that some of those taken were not minors but full fledged adults. However the adults were detained in the orphanage nonetheless.

“A few days after, the combined 27 abductees from Du Merci Children were harassed to stop singing and praying and called names by the original occupants of the Nassarawa orphanage.

“The attention of the Director of Nassarawa Orphanage was sought who in turn informed the Commissioner of Women Affairs Dr Zahrau Mohammed Umar. The Commissioner arrived with her son, a police man, a plainclothes man and with the Orphanage staff, instead of settling the matter between Du Merci and Nassarawa children, the Commissioner and Director blamed the Du Merci children.

“When they requested that if she didn’t want them to observe their christian prayer and praises at the Nassarawa Orphanage, she should free them to return home to Du Merci Orphanage, she refused that Du Merci Orphanage is “illegal.”

“When informed that it was legal and certified by the proper Government regulatory agencies, Commissioner Umar took offense that they were accusing her of lying.

“She then insulted them in Hausa language as “sons of no body” (or “bastards” in English.)

When one of them replied that he is not a bastard because he has a mother and a father the Commissioner’s son held his neck very tight attempting to strangle him. Although he was finding it difficult to breath, one of the men who accompanied Commissioner Umar in plainclothes held his arm behind him while the Police man was slapping him on the face.

“At that point one of the original Nassarawa Orphanage boys used the brutalized boy’s phone and recorded what happened. However after the incident occurred, all phones were confiscated.

“Women Affairs Commissioner Zahrau Umar then cursed the orphans saying “your mothers are prostitutes” and commanded the Police to take and lock them up at Bompai Police Station.

The following:

Sarah aged 31,

Michael 21,

Blessing 23 and her 8 months baby,

Emmanuel Jnr 16,

Joseph 16,

Confidence 16 and

Peace 15 were driven down to Bompai Police Station, per Zahrau Umar’s orders with no lawful warrant of arrest of the adults or court order and without any criminal complaint or allegation and in abuse of her office and in excess of her jurisdiction.

“Fortunately the officers once again objected to the dumping of innocent children in their station and the Police who conveyed them were ordered to return them to Nassarawa Orphanage.

“The Commissioner had left with their phones and deleted all vital evidence in the phones including the torture, beating and brutalization of one of the Du Merci boys and returned them after six months.

“The Ministry of Women Affairs abandoned two sick kids in a private hospital and in 2020 released another eight (ages 15-22 years) children to the Christian Association of Nigeria because the children were protesting not being allowed to attend church or school. The eldest detainee, a university graduate, who was caring and advocating for the younger ones was kicked out of the Nassarawa Orphanage in December, 2020 after she reported the burning of one of them.

“The lady who was taken from Kaduna to Kano just days before her wedding, lost her relationship after her fiancé was denied access to her during her one year captivity.

“However 11 children are in Nassarawa Orphanage (10-15 years) and five children in Gaya Orphanage (4-8 years). All together more than half the seized children remain in their custody.

“The 16 children are being illegally detained by Kano state despite the dismissal of bogus child-trafficking charges against the missionary who established Du Mercy Orphanages - Prof Solomon Tarfa - more than six months ago.

“Worst of all, the children have been neglected, abused and islamized.

“Five minors who were separated from the older children and transfered to a remote village in Gaya are:

- Emmanuel (5 years) whose name was changed to “Ismail”,

- Destiny (5 years) changed to “Samaila”,

- Mercy (4 years) changed to “Amina,”

- Martha (5years) changed to “Khadijat,”and

- Esther (8 years) changed to “Fatima.”

“The children are reportedly emaciated, unkempt and traumatized. According to impeccable sources, the children can no longer speak English and now communicate only in Hausa having also been deeply indoctrinated with quranic recital in Arabic.

“Even more bizarre, the five Christian orphans are being guarded by the Hisbah religious police of Kano state confirming the religious motive of the government in islamizing the Christian children especially after the Nigerian Police refused the Commissioner’s order to detain Du Merci orphans at Bompai police station the second time.

“The forceful conversion of these young children is just the latest example of Gov Ganduje’s radical Islamization agenda. The Governor had been featured in a viral video bribing Christian girls with cash to convert to Islam.

“Now it’s been revealed that he uses Kano state government institutions such as Women Affairs Ministry and Hisbah after the terminated collaboration with federal government machinery of NPF and NAPTIP to force Islamic conversions of the children. Incidentally, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development Kano State, Dr. Zahrau Muhammad Umar, holds a BA, MA, PhD all in Islamic Studies and was appointed Commissioner in 2019 which is when she began her aggressive offensive against the Christian orphanages.

“It is highly unfortunate that at a time when Islamic slave centers masquerading as schools were captives were recently freed were discovered in Kano, the government continues to hold orphans captive from a Christian orphanage where they were living, nurtured and well-cared for.

“Instead of joining hands to help mitigate Nigeria’s shameful ranking as the country with the most out of school children in the world, Kano has turned English-speaking children into Hausa-speaking urchins.

“We urge you to call on the Kano State government and the Federal Government to immediately free the Du Merci 16 more so following the acquittal of Prof Solo Tarfa on the abduction charges by the High Court of Kano since June 24, 2021.

“We especially draw urgent attention to the case of Moses one of the orphans who was burnt in the Kano State orphanage and hospitalized for seven months and is not receiving proper medical post op care https://www.csw.org.uk/2021/11/09/press/5474/article.htm

“Having released nine who have since returned to the very Du Mercy orphanage they were taken from, there is simply no basis, in law, fact or logic, for Kano state to continue to illegally detain the remaining 16 orphans.

“We ask that you revoke the American visas of Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development Kano State, Dr. Zahrau Muhammad Umar and her entire family for their direct participation in child and human rights abuses, personalization and abuse of office, proselytization of under age children in violation of the constitution, false imprisonment, abduction amongst others.

“We recommend US review of the role of Police Commissioner Mr. Habu Sani for possible sanctions.

“We also recommend a visa ban on Governor Ganduje’s family as well following reports of the arrest of his wife Hafsat Ganduje for fraud against his son Abdulazeez by the EFCC.

“We recommend the blacklisting of NAPTIP operative Mr Misbau Iyya Kaura.

“We urge you to suspend US funding for NAPTIP programs in Kano and Kaduna states until the Du Merci children are released, compensation paid them and disciplinary action taken against Misbau Iyya Kaura.

“Ambassador, you will agree that US citizens will find it unconscionable that their taxes are used to fund persecution of Christians and abuse of children.

“It is even more disturbing that the government is operating like bandit kidnappers or even worse.

“As reports indicate that the family of under-pants bomber Mutallab recently visited him in the US, we must truly ask how seriously the issue of who comes to the US is being taken.

“This is all the more important as Mutallab’s father honorably reported to your embassy that his son was a terror threat but yet he ended up on a flight to Detroit.

“We urge you therefore not to similarly ignore this strong appeal which is based on actions of those with no respect for lofty universal ideals of democracy, human rights, religious freedom or good governance but who like to gallivant to countries that respect same while disregarding theirs at home.

“Kindly accept best wishes for a happy new year!”

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