Kano: Orphanage Co-founder Cries out over Forceful Takeover, Conversion of 16 Inmates

Emameh Gabriel in Abuja 

The co-founder of the Du Merci Centre Orphanage, Kano, Professor Richard Solomon Musa Tarfa, has called on the federal government to intervene in the continuous detention of 16 inmates of the Orphanage, forcefully taken into custody by the Kano State Government.

Briefing the press in Abuja on Friday, Tarfa said, the condition of the children was deteriorating by the day, due to inadequate care from the authorities.

According to him, the 16 children, who were made up of seven males and nine females, had stopped schooling, while they have rapidly lost English communication skills. He also explained that the religion of the children were been changed against their wish.  

He called on the minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, to intervene urgently to ensure the timely release of the children. 

In view of the imminent transition from APC led government in Kano, under Governor Umar Ganduje’s to NNPP government, Prof Tarfa also called on relevant authorities in Kano to expedite actions to ensure the children are released before May 29, when the administration is expected elapse, especially now that the charges against him have been quashed.

Tarfa said, himself and wife have suffered untold persecution since their ordeal started in 2002, when he was first arrested, charged with criminal abduction of minors and sentenced to prison before he was later vindicated by a superior court. 

Tarfa, who was released from prison in January, 2023, said, it amounted to double jeopardy for the Kano State government to continue to hold on to the 16 children, against the backdrop of the judgment of superior court, which exonerated him.

“Initially, I and my wife were arrested, under the pretext that we were operating illegal orphanage. Due Merci was forcibly closed by the Kano State authorities. When we eventually proved that the Centre was operating legally, they changed the charges to forceful abduction of minors. They have done everything to rope me but because I did nothing wrong, I have continued to triumph.

“In 2002, and following the intervention of the late Emir of Kano and a legal challenge in the wake of a similar raid, a High Court ruled that the Du Merci Centre was duly registered and was conducting a legitimate endeavour. It also ordered the return of the children who had been seized. A copy of this ruling is also available easily.”

“The pressing issue now is the release of the 16 children at my Centre that were forcefully taken away. If their action is based on the allegation that I was operating illegally, now I have been exonerated. I want my children back. They need to be taken care of. They need to go to school.

Professor Tarfa and his wife opened the Du Merci Centre in 1996 to care for abandoned children in the Christian District of Sabon Gari. The centre provides accommodation for these children, who view them as parents and are educated and cared for until they are able to live successful independent lives. It also accommodates young women who are pregnant out of wedlock, until they give birth, reconciling them whenever possible with parents who had rejected them due to social stigma.