KIDNAPPING OF CHRISTIAN GIRLS, FORCEFUL CONVERSION TO ISLAM AND CHILD MARRIAGE AGAINST THE CONSENT OF THEIR PARENTS, A NEW SYSTEMATIC WAY OF UNLEASHING TERROR ON THE CHRISTIANS IN NORTHERN NIGERIA.
A PAINFUL STORY OF JENNIFER YOHANNA, A 15 YEAR OLD CHRISTIAN GIRL THAT HAS BEEN IN ISLAMIC CAPTIVITY FOR MORE THAN 5 MONTHS
Two years ago (2016), Mr. Yohanna Matthew Shagari’s younger sister Blessing was kidnapped and converted to Islam by some of the Muslims of Pambegua in Kubau LGA, Kaduna State Nigeria. Despite all the threats and harassments he faced, Yohanna insisted for the return of his beloved sister, and God so kind, he secured her freedom with the help of the then Divisional Police Officer of Pambegua after 21 days in captivity. Even though they came after her to kill her for their claim of her committing apostasy (going back to her original Christian faith from the islam she was forced into), Yohanna still stood his ground and God saw them through unhurt. Ever since then, the Muslim community of Pambegua vowed to severely deal with him for being anti-Islam just because he fought the injustice done to his sister who was kidnapped, converted to Islam and detained against her wish and that of her parents and family.
One might think that things must have normalized after two years of such an incidence. That thought is however, nothing but a costly assumption that has brought pain to the entire family of Mr. Yohanna when he and his family became relaxed with them. They continued their daily lives thinking all is well but little did they know that there was an underground plan to inflict a terrible pain that no parent will ever wish to have; a plan to forcefully kidnap his biological daughter, convert her to Islam, abuse, molest and treat her as a sex slave and then marry her off to another Muslim against his wish. Why will they want to do such a terrible thing to him? Simply because he fought for the freedom of his own biological sister who has been abused and terrorized by them. According to them he has stood in the way of Islam, he is anti-Islam and he must be crushed. That is the fate of Mr Yohanna and his family at the moment. They have kidnapped his 15 year old daughter, converted her to Islam, hypnotized her, married her off to their Muslim brother, denied her parents access to her, displaced Yohanna’s family from their home and now hunting after his life to kill him for insisting for the return of his own daughter.
On 1st January, 2018 the family of Mr Yohanna Mathew Shagari met with the most trying moment of their lives when their beloved first child Jennifer was kidnapped from their own house by one Abubakar Salisu, in a well-organized plot to torment the entire family. When Mr Yohanna was not listened to when he reported the matter to the Divisional Police Station of Pambegua, he then went and reported the matter to the Zaria Area Police Command. After 15 days of kidnapping, detaining and abusing Jennifer, she was released back to him on the condition that he must allow her to practice Islam.
When Jennifer whose name was changed to Zainab returned back to her parents she came back in such a pathetic condition. She was hypnotized to the point of running mad and when she return home she was threatening to do Jihad on her mother, because according to her, that was what they asked her to do. On observing the condition of his daughter, Yohanna took her for some rehabilitation. That very night she went for the rehab one Muslim cleric from Zaria by name Mallam Abdullahi Baba Abdullahi of JIBWIS mobilized more than thirty Islamic militants and stormed at Yohanna’s residence shouting with a public address system to return Jennifer or face the consequences. They continued until around 2am midnight. When they discovered that Jennifer was not at home, they left back to Zaria. Jennifer stayed at the rehab center for two weeks because of the terrible condition she came back with.
When Jennifer returned from the rehab center to be with her family on 1st February 2018, in the middle of the night, Mr Yohanna’s brother who is a Muslim mobilized some Muslim youths and came and took Jennifer out of the house through the window of her grandmother where she sleeps, without her parent’s knowing. That was the last time Mr. Yohanna Matthew Shagari and his family saw their daughter. Even when they later found out where their daughter has been kept, the Police and other relevant authorities didn’t do anything to help them when they reported to them severally. That was how this family continued to wallow in pain for losing their daughter forcefully with only God to help since the constituted authorities were not willing to act accordingly. They continued in prayers and fasting and trusting God to return their daughter back to them, God so kind, on Wednesday 14th June, 2018, Jennifer came back home, but some Muslim women came and forced her back to where she was kept and married to. When her mother was informed of what’s going on, she went to the house to see her daughter even though she was heavily pregnant. When she enters the house where Jennifer was detained, lo and behold she saw Jennifer who was willing to follow her home. When they were coming back home, the Muslims youths came en mass and beat up the pregnant mother to collect back Jennifer and then Mr. Yohanna came and rushed into the house to rescue his wife and his daughter. The youths over powered him, beat him up and collected Jennifer back. On seeing the situation of things, Jennifer’s parents had no option but to return home without their daughter.
To their surprise, these youths came and followed Jennifer’s parents’ home and began to stone them and were also heavily armed with weapons to kill Mr Yohanna for touching his daughter (who is now a Muslim as they claimed) and also for entering a Muslim house as an infidel. When Yohanna’s father came and pleaded with them, they also beat him down. That’s how Yohanna had to leave his own house and escape for his life together with his wife and children. As at the time of filing this report, the Muslim youths, and other local and constitutionally recognized securities are hunting after his life to kill him for insisting on the release of his daughter.
The entire family of Yohanna Matthew Shagari are deeply in pain, and those who are constitutionally recognized to intervene in the matter are also adding salt to their injury. The Divisional Police State of Pambegua and the Zaria Area command are fully aware of this act of broad day injustice but they are proving deaf ears to the whole issue. They have sidelined with the Muslims to torment this family simply because they are Christians.
The Hausa Christians Foundation is pleading with all well-meaning Nigerians to help this daughter reunited back to her family, and ensure that justice is done.
Let’s continue to pray for the Family of Mr. Yohanna Matthew Shagari for God’s comfort in this trying time.
Currently there are two Christian girls in captivity from the same Kubau LGA of Kaduna State, 16 year old Zainab Bulus Bawa Kugawa and 15 year old Jennifer Yohanna Pambegua whose families are in perpetual pain for more than five months.
We, together with the Parents of Jennifer and Zainab and the entire Hausa Christians Community of Kubau LGA, make the following demands:
1. Jennifer and Zainab should be released and reunited back to her family immediately and unconditionally. They are still minors and under the care of their parents. No one has the right to take them away from their parents.
2. The Culprits, Abubakar Salisu and Saleh Idi Magami should respectively be brought to book and justice should take its course.
3. The Village heads of Pambegua and Anchau should be punished for sponsoring these acts of inhumanity to man.
4. The Federal, State, and Local Government Authorities should desist from playing a role in anything that has the tendencies of disrupting the peace of this country.
5. The Northern Christians especially the Hausa Christians should not be regarded or treated as slaves just because they are Christians.
6. Human rights should and must be respected. And whoever is found wanton should be punished accordingly.
The Hausa Christians Foundation is working tirelessly to ensure justice takes its course and see to the return of these two Christian Girls.
Please Pray with us and for them also. Share this story with as many as you can, and act to help these families find hope again in any way you can.
#FREE JENNIFER AND ZAINAB NOW#
Published on 19th June, 2018 by
*Hausa Christians Foundation (HACFO)*
www.hacfo.org
www.facebook.com/HACFO
voiceofhausachristians.ng@gmail.com
08057543004
