News Central has received deeply troubling reports surrounding the continued detention of Hamdiyya Sidi Sharif, the 18-year-old critic of Sokoto Governor Ahmad Aliyu, who was recently abducted and later found in Zamfara State under suspicious circumstances.
According to the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, Hamdiyya is currently being held in a police facility in Zamfara despite urgent medical needs following her ordeal.
In a press briefing held in Abuja, Rafsanjani said, “They say that three days ago, Hamdiyya was abducted on Keke Napep in her village, taken to a place where she was injected with drugs. Later, she was abandoned in the bush in Bakura Local Government in Zamfara.”
He further revealed, “She was found by a good Samaritan and eventually ended up in a police station. After treatment in hospital, right now the Commissioner of Police of Sokoto State is demanding she must be returned to him. We believe she was absolutely abducted by the state government syndicate to kill her.”
He warned: “She must not be released to the Commissioner of Police in Sokoto. Because from all indications, ladies and gentlemen, these people are determined to take the life of this girl.”
Amnesty International Nigeria has also weighed in, calling on the Nigerian government to investigate the circumstances surrounding Hamdiyya’s disappearance. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Amnesty stated:
“The Nigerian authorities must immediately investigate the vicious abduction of Hamdiyya Sidi Sharif in Sokoto on 20 May 2025 at around 10:00am. This is the second time she was abducted while facing a sham trial based on bogus charges filed by the government of Sokoto state.”
This recent incident follows a brutal attack on November 13, 2024, when Hamdiyya was abducted by armed thugs while on her way to retrieve her phone from a charging point. She was beaten, dragged into a tricycle, and later thrown out of the moving vehicle—left on the roadside with severe injuries.
Civil society groups, human rights defenders, and international watchdogs have since demanded her immediate release and protection, with fears mounting over her safety and the political motivations behind her repeated targeting.
As calls for accountability and justice grow louder, all eyes are on the Nigerian Police Force and federal authorities to ensure Hamdiyya’s safety and uphold the rule of law.
