By Abdullahi Alhassan, Kaduna The Civil Society for Good Governance and Accountability has condemned the wave of violent attacks, abductio...
By Abdullahi Alhassan, Kaduna
The Civil Society for Good Governance and Accountability has condemned the wave of violent attacks, abductions, and alleged cover-ups by state actors in Kaduna State, demanding urgent action to rescue victims and end what it described as a “dangerous complicity of denial and deception.”
In a press statement issued and signed by 31 organisations, the coalition said it was speaking out because “lives are at stake” and the people of Kaduna can no longer endure the cycle of violence compounded by false official narratives.
The group recalled that on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026, heavily armed terrorists attacked Ariko Community in Awon Ward, Kachia Local Government Area, storming the First ECWA Church and the Catholic Church during worship services.
According to the statement, five worshippers were killed in cold blood while 38 others were abducted in the coordinated assault on two houses of worship.
“This attack on two churches on one of the most sacred days of the Christian calendar is not merely a security failure,” the coalition stated. “It is a civilizational and eerily familiar affront that demands the most urgent and honest response from every arm of government.”
The Civil Society faulted the Nigerian Army for issuing what it called a “false claim of rescue” in the immediate aftermath of the Ariko attack.
The Army had circulated a statement claiming that 31 of the abducted victims were rescued, but the coalition said the claim was inaccurate and contradicted by facts on the ground.
“As of the time of this release, all abducted persons remain in captivity,” the statement read. “The families of victims have maintained direct contact with the abductors, who have themselves confirmed that the victims are in their camps.”
It cited a counter-statement by the Kuturmi Unity Development Association (KUDA), signed by its President, Dr J.D. Ariko, and Publicity Secretary, Hon. Manasseh Samuel, on April 6, 2026.
KUDA had stated: “Contrary to the reports being circulated, all the abducted persons are still in captivity with their abductors. This clearly invalidates any claim of a successful rescue operation.”
The coalition warned that the false rescue claim in Ariko is not an isolated incident but part of a disturbing pattern by authorities.
It referenced the January 18, 2026 abduction of 177 worshippers from three churches in Kurmin Wali, Kajuru LGA, where the Police and the Kajuru LGA Chairman initially denied the attack.
“Only sustained public pressure forced an acknowledgement,” the group noted. “The playbook is unchanged: deny, deflect, discredit, then concede only when pressure becomes unbearable. This pattern must end.”
The statement further raised alarm over what it called the “persecution of truth-tellers” in the aftermath of the Ariko attack.
It said the Speaker of the Kachia Local Government Legislative Council, Hon. Mark Bawa, was suspended indefinitely by the Executive Chairman, Dr. Manzo Daniel Maigari, for granting a press interview to Punch Newspaper on April 5, 2026.
The suspension letter dated April 7, 2026, accused Hon. Bawa of misrepresenting the situation on the ground and failing to attend a meeting with the GOC of the Nigerian Army’s 1 Division “to clarify and possibly apologise.”
The Civil Society rejected the suspension “in the strongest possible terms,” describing it as an assault on democracy and political intimidation.
“Suspending a lawmaker for speaking about a security incident that affects his own constituents makes him a double victim of tragedy and oppressive state actors,” it said, demanding Hon. Bawa’s immediate and unconditional reinstatement.
The coalition also expressed outrage that 74 communities in Kachia LGA have been deserted due to insecurity, citing an admission by the local government chairman.
“This is a clear indictment of the state and federal governments,” the statement declared.
Beyond Ariko, the group listed other recent attacks where victims remain in captivity. It said 11 people abducted from Zunturum, Kachia LGA, on March 31, 2026, are still being held, with terrorists demanding ₦150 million and 10 motorcycles as ransom.
In Kahir, Aribi Ward, Kagarko LGA, 13 people were killed and 28 others abducted on Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026, with abductors demanding ₦200 million.
On Easter Sunday, bandits also killed three people in Maro Kasuwa and abducted an unconfirmed number of residents.
“These are not numbers. They are mothers, fathers, children, and grandparents whose safe return must be the single most urgent priority of every security agency in Kaduna State,” the coalition stressed.
The Civil Society issued six clear demands to the authorities. First, it called on the Nigerian Army to redirect all operational resources toward securing the actual rescue and release of all victims.
Second, it demanded immediate efforts to return displaced persons from the 74 deserted communities in Kachia to their ancestral land.
Third, it insisted that abducted persons from Ariko, Zunturum, Kahir, Maro Kasuwa, and all other affected communities must be rescued or secured for immediate release.
Fourth, it demanded the unconditional reinstatement of Hon. Mark Bawa and respect for his right as an elected official to speak on matters affecting his constituents.
Fifth, it urged government to put appropriate measures in place to protect from reprisals anyone who makes a good faith report on the security situation of their community.
Sixth, it called on the Federal and Kaduna State Governments to activate their constitutional Responsibility to Protect under Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) with immediate, concrete, and measurable actions.
“The people of Ariko, Zunturum, Kahir, Maro Kasuwa, and every community in Kaduna State visited by violence deserve better,” the statement concluded.
“They deserve a government that tells the truth. They deserve security agencies that rescue. They deserve elected officials who stand with them, not officials who suspend and intimidate those who dare to speak.”
The coalition vowed to sustain its advocacy, stating: “We refuse to normalize the criminalization of truth-telling. We refuse to accept a reality in which criminals are rewarded for killings and abductions, the abducted are abandoned, the dead are undercounted, and the powerful face no consequence for their failures.”
“We will continue to demand that every captive returns home and every Nigerian works the free soil,” it added.
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