Police to prosecute alleged abductor of Ese, as Delta, Kano govs demand legal action

Police said on Tuesday that Yunusa (aka Yellow), the alleged abductor of Ese Oruru, the 14-year-old girl allegedly kidnapped from Yenegoa, Bayelsa State and forced into marriage in Kano State, would be prosecuted.
This is as the governors of Kano and Delta states joined in the mounting call for the prosecution of the abductor.
Assistant Police Commissioner in charge of Zone 1 Police Headquarters, Kano, Shuaibu Gambo, told journalists in Kano shortly after Ese was dispatched to the Nigeria Police Headquarters, Abuja, Tuesday, that ‘Yellow’would be charged to court to face criminal charges.
Similarly, groups like the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) have called for the prosecution of Yellow who allegedly abducted Ese and forced her into marriage in Kano, Kano State six months ago.
The 14-year-old who regained freedom, Monday, following the intervention of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, has also been promised full rehabilitation by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State, who admonished parents to be more vigilant about the activities of their children.
Ese and Yellow were taken from Kano to Abuja, Monday, for the handover of the former to her parents by the Inspector General of Police (IG), Mr. Solomon Arase. But the handover could not take place following the late arrival of Ese’s parents to the federal capital city. The ceremonies, Police Force Public Relations Officer Olabisi Kolawole, a deputy commissioner of police, said yesterday, would take place today at the police headquarters.
Leading the call for police prosecution, Governor Okowa who said he heard about the alleged abduction for the first time on Monday called on the police to investigate the allegation and bring to book all those who might be indicted.

“No illegality must be condoned in any society,” the governor said in a statement in Asaba by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Charles Ehiedu Aniagwu.
The governor described the incident as unprecedented and uncanny, considering the age of the abductee, who was allegedly forced into marriage without the consent of her parents and reportedly converted to Islam by his abductor.
The Kano State Government in a statement by its Commissioner for Information, Youths and Sports, Malam Mohammed Garba, dissociated itself from the alleged abduction, forced marriage and conversion to Islam of the teenager.
Condemning the episode and decrying security agencies’ poor handling of the matter, the government said although the state government was not aware of the incident, the directive of the Emir of Kano Sanusi II, for the release of the girl should have been acted upon.
It, therefore, ordered that the abductor be brought to book since the Constitution and Islamic teaching abhorred abduction and forced marriage.
The statement further condemned any statement by anyone or group, linking the government to the matter in the social media, adding that the act was meant to tarnish the image of the state.
It stressed that the abductor was responsible for his action and should solely take responsibility for it, noting that the state has cordial relation with Bayelsa indigenes and the state.
The government enjoined indigenes of Kano State living in other parts of the country to live peacefully with their host communities and respect their ways of life.
In its reaction, the IYC condemned the alleged abduction and asked the police to immediately prosecute the alleged abductor.
“The IYC insists that the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, must bring those who masterminded the kidnap of Miss Oruru to justice in line with the anti-kidnapping law of Bayelsa State,” it said, adding: “This is the only way we can put a stop to such criminal conducts especially considering the worrying activities of Fulani herdsmen in different parts of the country.’’
The group commended the role of the media in the rescue of Ese, noting that the media had once again demonstrated how important it is in the task of nation building.
Also reacting to the alleged abduction, a Muslim group, MURIC, called on the police to immediately ‎commence the prosecution of Yellow.
In a statement in Abuja by its Executive Director, Ishaq Akintola, MURIC said Yunusa‎’s alleged action “violated the law and caused a Christian family to go through a traumatic period‎”.
Akintola said the alleged abductor should first be charged to court in Yenagoa, and later before a Sharia court in Kano if it was proved that he had canal knowledge of the girl.
“Our position is based on the fact that the girl is a minor,” the group said, explaining: “Attempting to marry off the girl without her parent’s permission is not only a breach of common law but also a violation of the Shariah provision on the need for the parents’ approval before nikah (Islamic marriage) can be deemed valid (La nikah bila waliyyin).
“Of particular significance in this regard is the express command in the Glorious Qur’an that women should be married with the permission of their parents. The Qur’an says inter alia, ‘…And marry them (i.e. women) with the permission of their parents (Qur’an 4:25)’.”
The group commended ‎the Emir of Kano for his role in the matter, saying he “displayed immense understanding of the issues at stake and acted like a responsible leader and a knowledgeable Muslim by ordering that the girl should be returned to her family”.
“We have the laws to take care of this type of crime. We should enforce them. People should desist from acting as if we don’t have these laws,” he said.
“The fact that Yunusa is a Muslim cannot becloud our sense of justice. The Qur’an commands Muslims to ‘…Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses of Allah, even if the case is against yourselves, or your parents, or your family, and whether it is against a rich or poor man… (Qur’an 4:135).”
MURIC said it could not afford to be partisan, adding that a fellow Muslim, Yunusa, had violated the law and caused a Christian family to go through a traumatic period.
It said, “Unless it can be proved that the girl came to Kano separately and alone, not in the company of Yunusa, the latter stands culpable.”
According to the group, the issue of Ese’s conversion does not even arise because she is deemed to be an adherent of her parents’ religion until she attains maturity.
MURIC said, “Section 38 (ii) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, stresses the right of parents on their children in matters of religion. The purported conversion is therefore null and void and of no consequence whatsoever. Ese Oruru cannot be free to choose her own faith until she is 18.”
Meanwhile, the father of Ese, Mr. Charles Oruru, has indicted the Emir of Kano, Mallam Muhammadu Sanusi II, in his daughter’s travail.
Oruru, in an interview with Raypower FM, Tuesday, said Sanusi deserved no credit in the eventual release of Ese “as he only bowed to pressure from Nigerians”.
Ese was taken from Opolo, in the Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, to Kano State by Yunusa, aka Yellow, in August, 2015.
Oruru said, “The Emir did not play any role there. All security agencies in Yenagoa and in Abuja were also part of those who refused to help.
“That is the truth because when we got to Kano, we were told that the Emir had written a letter that the girl should be released on August 26, 2015, and this was not done.
“They wanted to keep the girl in Kano, but the pressure was everywhere after the whole world had heard about the matter, so he knew that if he didn’t release the girl, it would lead to a big problem.”
Sanusi had on Monday refuted claims that he sheltered Ese, saying he had ordered that the girl be taken to her parents since 2015.
The Emir, while speaking at a press conference, in his palace said he got to know that the girl was still in Kano when journalists from the BBC called him.
Sanusi had said, “Since the time we ordered that the girl be taken to her parents in Bayelsa through AIG Zone 1, we didn’t hear anything about her; just for us to now start hearing all kinds of stories that we are keeping her in our custody. This is injustice of the highest order.”