95 Obigbo Residents Still Locked Up in Kaduna, Five Years After EndSARS

It has been five long years since the EndSARS protests shook Nigeria, but for 95 residents of Obigbo, Rivers State, the nightmare never ended.

According to a new report by the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), these citizens were arrested during the 2020 EndSARS protests and secretly transferred from Rivers State to Kaduna prison. Shockingly, they have remained there ever since, without trial, without a court hearing, and without justice.

The rights group revealed that four of the detainees have died in custody, while 257 others are still missing. Intersociety says it has publicly published the names of the abducted residents, calling on authorities to act immediately.

What makes this story even more painful for many Nigerians is the claim that the former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, was aware of these arrests back in 2020. Till today, neither the federal nor the state government has offered answers to the families of those detained.

Many residents of Rivers State say they have relatives who went missing during the EndSARS protests and never returned. For them, this revelation only reopens deep wounds.

Rights activists and social commentators are now urging influential voices, including prominent online activist VeryDarkMan (VDM) to intervene and amplify the case, in hopes of securing justice for the detainees.

“These were unarmed citizens who were simply exercising their constitutional right to protest,” one activist told reporters. “They were never charged to court, never tried, and yet they remain behind bars. This is not just illegal; it is inhumane.”

Nigerians on social media have begun sharing the images of the detainees and tagging human rights organizations, urging them to pressure the government into taking action.

If these allegations are true, it points to a grave violation of human rights and a painful reminder that the issues that led to the EndSARS protests remain unresolved. For the families of the detained, five years of waiting has been too long. The call is simple: bring them home.