By Abdullahi Alhassan, Kaduna
Coalition of 38 civil society organisations, including the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Amnesty International Nigeria,and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), has condemned the alleged persecution, harassment, and unlawful treatment of Miss Hamdiyyah Sharif, a teenage social commentator from Sokoto State.
According to reports, Miss Sharif was targeted by state officials after she spoke out about the repeated bandit attacks in her state, which led to killings, rape, arson, and the displacement of innocent residents.
“Rather than receiving a response from authorities, she became the subject of relentless intimidation. Her legal team reported her missing, only for her to later be discovered in a hospital in Bakura, Zamfara State, under suspicious and unexplained conditions.
In a strongly worded joint statement, the civil society groups decried Miss Sharif’s treatment as emblematic of a wider crackdown on civic voices across the country. They accused the Sokoto State Government of abandoning its responsibility to citizens, choosing instead to crush those who hold it accountable.
The groups warned that Nigeria is veering dangerously towards authoritarianism under the pretext of governance. They accused certain state officials of weaponizing public institutions to silence dissent and crush opposition.
A prominent women’s rights advocate, who preferred to remain anonymous, described the ongoing situation as not just political repression but also as gender-based violence. She called on all women in political positions and women’s rights organizations to take a stand against this growing menace.
The civil society groups have called on all Nigerians to join them in resisting injustice and defending the country’s democratic freedoms. They affirmed that “the country belongs to all of us, not just the elite, not just the powerful. Civic space is not a privilege. It is a right.”
As the case of Hamdiyyah Sharif continues to attract national and international attention, the civil society groups have reaffirmed their resolve to resist injustice and defend Nigeria’s democratic freedoms no matter the cost. They declared, “We refuse to fold our arms while Nigeria slides into repression. We will mobilise, we will resist, we will speak because silence, in times like these, is not neutrality, it is complicity.”
The alleged persecution of Miss Hamdiyyah Sharif is a stark reminder of the dangers of authoritarianism and the importance of defending civic space. The civil society groups’ call to action is a clarion call to all Nigerians to stand up for their rights and resist injustice.
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