Society Gists

An Ibadan-based family from Arojosere compound is embroiled in a bitter dispute over the insistence on subjecting a young girl to female genital mutilation (FGM), forcing her immediate family to flee the country for their safety.

Mr. Musa Ibrahim and his wife, Mrs. Khadijat Aina Ibrahim, along with their four children, including their daughter Maryam, reportedly fled Nigeria after receiving threats from members of their extended family.

The couple refused to comply with demands to subject Maryam to the controversial and harmful practice of FGM, a long-standing family tradition.

Despite their departure, an investigation by SocietyGists revealed that some elders, led by Chief Salawu Olaosebikan, remain determined to carry out the procedure should they locate Maryam.

This ongoing pressure and intimidation have fueled tensions within the extended family, leading to internal conflicts.

Sources familiar with the situation disclosed that the family is now deeply divided over the practice of FGM, with several members opposing it. Some parents with daughters have protested, and many have reportedly fled Ibadan to protect their children from the primitive procedure.

According to documents obtained from a police complaint filed at Majawe Divisional Station in Ibadan, Mr. Ibrahim stated that family elders, led by Chief Olaosebikan, had threatened his life and that of his wife for refusing to surrender their daughter for circumcision. He expressed grave concerns over the health risks, trauma, and human rights violations associated with FGM, reinforcing his decision to resist the practice.

The controversy, which began in 2023, escalated when Ibrahim reported the threats to the police. Authorities have since launched an investigation into the matter.

On January 15, 2024, Mr. Ibrahim further alleged that Chief Olaosebikan and other family elders attempted to lure Maryam in what appeared to be a kidnapping attempt aimed at forcibly carrying out the procedure.

The attempt was thwarted when a vigilant neighbor raised an alarm, preventing the abduction. Fearing for their lives, the Ibrahim family— Mr. Musa Ibrahim, his wife Khadijat Aina Ibrahim, their daughter Maryam Opeyemi Ibrahim, and their sons Abdulmalik Adesola Ibrahim, Abdulrahman Taiwo Ibrahim, and Abdulroheem Kehinde Ibrahim—fled Nigeria in May 2024.

The case remains under police investigation, as advocacy groups continue to condemn female genital mutilation and push for stronger protections against the practice in Nigeria”