Connect with us

News

Inside Nigeria’s Hidden Military Prison Where Terrorists, Protesters, Students, ‘Enemies Of The State’ Are Held Without Trial –Report

Published

on

Detainees are blindfolded kilometres before arrival. Even upon release, they are similarly masked and led out, unsure of where they’ve been or how to return.

 

The road to Wawa military prison, hidden deep in Nigeria’s North Central region, is deliberately veiled in secrecy. No one, except the military, knows the exact route.

 

Detainees are blindfolded kilometres before arrival. Even upon release, they are similarly masked and led out, unsure of where they’ve been or how to return.

 

On July 27, 2021, eleven individuals travelling home to the South-East after attending the court trial of Nnamdi Kanu, detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), were reportedly intercepted by the Department of State Services (DSS) near Lokoja, Kogi State.

 

Accused of being members of IPOB’s armed wing, the Eastern Security Network, they were reportedly swiftly detained and held in an underground DSS facility in Abuja.

 

Within weeks, two of them, Nonso Awoke, a final-year computer science student at Ebonyi State University, and Pius Awoke, a practiSing lawyer, were separated from the group, shackled, and sent for what authorities called “military investigation.”

 

They would end up in one of Nigeria’s most secretive military detention centres: Wawa Barracks, according HumAngle.

 

Mapping a Hidden Prison

 

Though officially located in Niger State, the precise position of Wawa prison remained a mystery for years.

 

Some reports linked it to Wawa town, others to New Bussa or Kainji.

 

But a 2024 investigation by HumAngle used satellite imagery and Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) to locate it on the Kainji-Wawa highway, about four kilometres east of Wawa town and equally distant from the Nigerian Air Force base in New Bussa.

 

The report noted that the facility is buried inside a vast military compound off the Wawa-Wakwa road, nestled between Wawa town and Tamanai village in Borgu Local Government Area.

 

According to insiders, it consists of nine two-storey blocks, labeled ‘A’ to ‘I’, surrounded by double perimeter walls.

 

“Each floor contains 10 cells,” Pius was quoted as saying. “In every cell, there are 15 inmates, making approximately 450 per block.”

 

The Detainee Demographics

Wawa is said to primarily hold detainees accused of terrorism, mostly alleged members of Boko Haram or its splinter group, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

In 2017, a closed military court held at Wawa tried over 1,600 such suspects, convicting several and sentencing them to prison terms ranging from three to 60 years.

The prison reportedly came under ISWAP attack in October 2022, aimed at freeing detained fighters.

The mission failed. The group lost eight men, including a commander.

But it’s not just jihadists inside; Wawa’s detainees include a disturbing mix, civilians arrested during the #EndSARS protests, underage boys, mentally ill individuals, and even herders accused of kidnapping.

 

A growing group of Igbo detainees were reportedly rounded up in the wake of security crackdowns following the 2020 protests, particularly in Obigbo, Rivers State.

 

#EndSARS and the Obigbo Siege

 

In Obigbo, security forces, allegedly responding to IPOB-related violence, conducted house-to-house raids after Governor Nyesom Wike declared a curfew.

 

What followed were allegations of rape, torture, and arbitrary arrests.

 

“Thirty-four of them were taken to Wawa,” Nonso was quoted as saying.

 

“Some of them were conductors and drivers going about their business. One of them was arrested for having a tattoo. Another was arrested for having a beard.”

 

Emeka Umeagbasi, director of civil rights group Intersociety, corroborated these findings.

 

“In our recent report, there’s a declassified document showing a request by the Nigerian Army for the transfer of so-called Boko Haram and IPOB terrorist suspects from the police to Wawa,” he said, according to HumAngle.

 

The Tiv Connection and Gana’s Death

 

Another large group inside Wawa are Tivs from Benue State, rounded up after the controversial killing of militia leader Terwase Akwaza, also known as Gana.

 

On September 8, 2020, Gana and his men surrendered during a peace convoy after a reconciliation meeting.

 

They were arrested by the military, and Gana was reportedly executed. Photos of his mutilated corpse later surfaced on social media.

 

Tor Gowon Yaro, who petitioned the National Human Rights Commission for the release of 76 of Gana’s men, said, “None of them has been released. None that I’m aware of.”

 

Pius, who was detained with some of them, added, “They beat them in a way that when they got to that detention, most of them died.”

 

Borno’s Detained Youth and The Knifar Movement

 

In Borno State, the military has for years detained hundreds of civilians after clearing Boko Haram-held areas.

 

Suspected of being collabo

rators, many were trucked to military camps like Giwa Barracks or Wawa.

 

Those captured while trying to flee to safety were also detained.

“Half of Borno youths, especially the Kanuris, are in detention,” Pius reportedly said.

The Knifar Movement, a group of displaced women, emerged to demand justice for these detained men.

While some have been released, including over 1,000 from Giwa and Wawa, many remain incarcerated without trial.

Life Inside the Prison Walls

Life in Wawa is said to be brutal and monotonous.

“Once you’re inside, you’re inside,” said Nonso. “You may not step outside for a year.”

 

Cells, often smaller than the average bedroom, hold 15 people. There’s no privacy, no doors on toilets or showers.

 

Belongings are limited to mats and jerricans. Sleeping space is minimal; blankets are used to demarcate personal areas.

 

Inmates pass time praying, chatting, or playing board games. Some read Hausa literature provided by the Red Cross.

 

Meals are meagre, beans without beans, just water, and often eaten only once a day due to scarcity.

“If they gave us beans, you would not see a single seed,” said Pius. “I once went a whole month without bathing.”

Conditions improve temporarily during visits by the Red Cross. But those visits became rare.

“The Red Cross stopped coming for over a year before I was released,” Pius said. “We heard it was because the soldiers mismanaged what they brought.”

Total Isolation, No News

Wawa also cuts off inmates from the outside world. There are no radios, newspapers, or visits.

 

“I didn’t know they changed money,” Pius recalled, referring to Nigeria’s 2023 currency redesign.

 

“I didn’t even know who was running for president.”

 

This information blackout extends to personal matters. Nonso’s mother believed him dead for nearly three years until she finally heard his voice on the day of his release in June 2024.

 

By then, she had spent two months in the hospital from stress and grief.

Death Comes Quietly: In Wawa, death is routine.

 

-Sahara

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Entertainment

Davido breaks silence after Grammy Award loss

Published

on

Five-time Grammy nominee, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has reacted after losing the Best African Music Performance category at the 68th Grammy Awards held in Los Angeles, United States.

 

The Afrobeats star shared a message of faith and resilience following the outcome of the ceremony, which took place on Sunday night at the Crypto.com Arena in California.

In a post on his Instagram page, Davido shared photos with his wife, Chioma, from the event and wrote, “Oluwa Dey my side,” alongside prayer and music emojis.
Hours later, he posted another set of pictures of himself and Chioma at the Grammys, reflecting on the loss in a longer caption.

“I said baby listen we lost again let’s not go ! she said ‘Be humble in victory and gracious in defeat’ we outside,” he wrote.
Chioma also reacted via her Instagram page, praising the singer, “You already know that you’re the perfect one, @davido,” she wrote, while sharing photos from the awards night.
Davido was nominated in the Best African Music Performance category at the 2026 Grammy Awards but lost to South African singer Tyla, who won with her song Push 2 Start.

Other nominees in the category included Burna Boy (Love), Ayra Starr and Wizkid (Gimme Dat), Davido (With You featuring Omah Lay), and Eddy Kenzo and Mehran Matin (Hope & Love).

The win marked Tyla’s second Grammy Award, following her first victory in 2024 for her hit single Water.

Speaking during the awards ceremony, the singer revealed that With You, featuring Omah Lay, almost did not make the final tracklist of his album 5IVE.
“Man, it’s so crazy because that song almost didn’t make the album. With You was not in anybody’s top five.
“And now look at it go. Every time I was performing it, my heart would just start beating like, what if I didn’t put this song?” he told OkayAfrica.

Davido also recounted how he learned about the Grammy nomination, saying the news came unexpectedly while he was in Dubai, days before his birthday.

“I was in the car, actually, checking a car, and then my phone rang. They were like, ‘Oh yeah, another nomination.’ I was like, wow. Thank God,” he said.

“With You” was released in April 2025 as the 17th track on Davido’s fifth studio album, 5IVE, and has since become one of his most successful recent records, surpassing 100 million streams on Spotify.

Despite the song’s success, Nigeria did not record a win at the 2026 Grammy Awards.
Davido said he is now focused on touring and releasing new music.

He is also billed to perform at Coachella 2026, where he will be the only Nigerian artiste on the festival lineup, performing on April 11 and April 18, 2026, in Indio, California.

-Guardian

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Kunle Afolayan gives reasons to marry many women

Published

on

Nollywood filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, has stirred reactions after advising men to “marry many women” while reflecting on his upbringing in a polygamous home.

 

The actor and producer made the remarks at the watch party of Aníkúlápó: The Ghoul Awakens, with a clip from the event going viral on Tuesday.

Speaking at the event, Afolayan linked his existence and achievements to his late father’s decision to marry several wives.

“Without my father, there wouldn’t have been a KAP Village or even Kunle Afolayan. I am the seventh born of my father because my father had ten wives. For the men, marry many women, or rather be involved with many women. You know why? If my father didn’t, he would not have born me, and that is the honest truth. But today, a few of us are lifting his legacy. Life is short, death is constant. Nobody has life forever. Everybody has a period. Use your period,” he said.

While his daughter, Eyiyemi Afolayan, joined him on stage, the filmmaker compared his childhood experience with his relationship with his children.

“They are lucky. For her, staying by my side is luck. Do you know why? I couldn’t stand it with my father. My father didn’t know my school. My father didn’t know my date of birth. He did not know anything about me other than, ‘He is the son of that person.’ But today, I’m so proud of my father,” he added.

Afolayan also spoke about fatherhood.

“Sometimes when people say ‘Happy Father’s Day,’ I’m always saying whether he pays child support or not, he’s still a father. I have been going to court because I want to get a divorce. I don’t mind being in the witness box, and I experienced the shit, so that I can marry many wives,” he said.

He thereafter prayed for his daughter, praising her role in the series.

“Hephzibah, her mother is the one who gave her the name. I don’t care, but I am proud of you. You started with the film, you did the first season, and now with the second season, you did amazingly well. My good Lord will continue to increase you in wisdom, in knowledge, and in understanding. If this is your path, the good Lord will see you through.”
However, this is not the first time the filmmaker has spoken about his late father’s polygamous lifestyle.

In March 2021, Afolayan told BBC Pidgin that his father, Adeyemi Afolayan, who died in 1996, married 10 wives and had 25 children, a decision he said took a toll on the family.

“I would not want to marry many wives because my father had 10 wives and I knew what happened throughout that period. I knew that really distracted my father. In this age, nobody needs to tell you before you know what’s right,” he said at the time.

He also disclosed that growing up in a polygamous home affected bonding among the children due to language and other barriers.

Afolayan further narrated how he battled poverty in his early years, revealing that he once lived in a one-room apartment in Ebute-Metta and sometimes had to deal with flooding.

“I was born in Ebute-Metta and have lived in one-room apartment before that we even have to grapple with flood sometimes. It’s not shame to say have been poor before. But if you see how l made it, it’s a matter of consistency. My father was a very popular filmmaker and ordinarily, people would expect me to life the kind of live akin to Hollywood stars,” he said.

“But that wasn’t the case. How would one live such life when you’re living in a room with ten women. That doesn’t mean there was no love among us.”

He had advised young filmmakers to start with the little resources available to them while working towards their dreams.

 

-Guardian

 

 

Continue Reading

Article

Court adjourns Ganduje’s corruption trial to April 15

Published

on

A Kano State High Court has adjourned until April 15 the trial of former governor Abdullahi Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat Umar, and son, Abdullahi Umar, alongside five other defendants, over alleged misappropriation of public funds amounting to billions of naira.

 

The defendants are facing an 11-count charge bordering on bribery, conspiracy, misappropriation, and diversion of public funds. The remaining accused persons are Abubakar Bawuro, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Ltd, Safari Textiles Ltd, and Lasage General Enterprises Ltd.

At the resumed hearing, the prosecution told the court it was ready to proceed and drew attention to a motion dated November 24, 2025, seeking leave to file additional proof of evidence.

However, defence lawyers raised objections, informing the court that multiple applications were pending and must be resolved before the trial could continue.

Lydia Oluwakemi-Oyewo, counsel to some of the defendants, said the defence had filed a motion dated July 17, 2025, seeking a stay of proceedings.
Adekunle Taiye-Falola, representing the third and seventh defendants, also referred to a separate motion dated May 23, 2025.
In addition, Muhammad Shehu, counsel to the fifth defendant, told the court that an affidavit had been filed notifying it of a pending application for stay of proceedings before the Court of Appeal.
Abubakar Ahmad, counsel to the sixth defendant, informed the court that he had filed a notice of preliminary objection and an application for extension of time to respond on points of law dated February 2, urging the court to fix a date for hearing.

Only Faruk Asekome, counsel to the eighth defendant, indicated readiness to proceed with the trial.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the presiding judge, Justice Amina Adamu-Aliyu, adjourned the matter to April 15 for the hearing of all pending applications and preliminary objections.

The trial has suffered repeated delays due to legal challenges. The high court had earlier dismissed preliminary objections raised by the defence as “incompetent” and affirmed its jurisdiction to hear the case.
That ruling was appealed by the defendants, who argued that the trial court lacked jurisdiction. However, in October 2025, the Kano Division of the Court of Appeal struck out the appeal, citing failure to properly transmit the record of appeal.

-Guardian

Continue Reading

Trending