Muhammad Musa, a former aide to the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has alleged that missing Kaduna-based activist Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata, was killed by police officers while in detention.
Musa made the allegation in a post shared on his Facebook page on Thursday, claiming that he witnessed the killing of the activist during his detention at Operations Yaki in Kaduna State.
According to Musa, the officers involved were twin brothers identified as CSP Hussaini Gimba and CSP Hassan Gimba. He alleged that the officers detained him alongside Dadiyata and another man identified as Saminu S/Fada Gusau.
The former aide claimed the officers repeatedly threatened his life during interrogation and warned that he could be killed in the same manner as Dadiyata and the other detainee.
Musa further alleged that investigators instructed him not to reveal his relationship with Bello Matawalle, the former governor of Zamfara State who currently serves as Minister of State for Defence.
He said all video statements recorded from him were made under duress and that he was prevented from mentioning his association with Matawalle during questioning.
“In the course of investigation, I was coerced by them that I shouldn’t make any attempt to disclose my relationship with former Governor of Zamfara State Dr Bello Matawalle, current Minister of State for Defence,” Musa wrote.
He claimed the interrogators instead focused on questioning him about his relationship with former Sokoto State Governor Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa, whom he alleged was their main target.
“That was the main reason in all the video clips they recorded on me under duress, I never disclosed our relationship with him because they threatened to kill me as they killed Dadiyata and Saminu S/Fada Gusau amongst others in my presence at Operations Yaki Kaduna,” he stated.
Musa also questioned why he was allegedly stopped from mentioning his connection with Matawalle despite serving as a Senior Special Assistant during Matawalle’s tenure as governor of Zamfara State.
“My concern is that I was the SSA to Matawallen Maradun during his tenure as governor in Zamfara State, but why they never allowed me to mention it even in my statement which I wrote under duress,” he added.
The allegations have generated reactions on social media, particularly following Musa’s response to comments questioning the credibility of his claims.
When asked in Hausa by a Facebook user whether Dadiyata had truly been killed, Musa replied: “I swear by Allah, Hussaini Gimba killed him.”
As of the time of filing this report, the Nigeria Police Force and the individuals named in the allegations had not publicly responded to the claims.
Dadiyata, a social media commentator and government critic, was abducted on August 2, 2019, by unidentified armed men from his residence in the Barnawa area of Kaduna State.
His disappearance triggered widespread public concern and sparked the #WhereIsDadiyata campaign across social media platforms. Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, repeatedly called on authorities to investigate his disappearance and ensure accountability.
Despite years of public pressure and advocacy, Dadiyata’s whereabouts have remained unknown, with no official confirmation regarding his fate prior to Musa’s allegations.
The new claims are likely to intensify demands for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the activist’s disappearance and the allegations made against security personnel.
