Father Denies Claims of Mistreatment by Second Wife Towards Walida

Following an interview with Walida, Weekend Trust reached out to Mal. Abdulhadi Ibrahim, her father, to clarify some of the issues raised during the discussion.

He was asked whether it was true that he had separated from Walida's mother before her departure from home.

"Yes, it is true. Her mother has passed away, and we had already separated even before her passing," he said.

Walida also claimed that her stepmother had been mistreating her, even going as far as to allege physical abuse. Ibrahim quickly refuted these statements, asserting, "That allegation is false. I believe she was influenced to make such claims. In reality, my wife treated her exceptionally well, often giving up her own bed for Walida. It appears they are staging these accusations to suggest she was unhappy living with us."

He further questioned Walida's assertion that she wished to live with Ifeanyi, stating, "How could she claim that? We cannot accept such a situation; he is a Christian and she a Muslim."

On claims that she ran away from home independently, Ibrahim denied these allegations, stating that even before the Department of State Services (DSS) investigation, Walida admitted to being taken by someone named Maryam. "Her claim of running away is nothing but a joke; it was all planned by them," he asserted.

When asked about how long Walida stayed with him while her mother was alive, Ibrahim clarified that she had actually returned to his house after some time at her grandmother's.

"She was living with me. The day she went missing, I had just returned from the farm when I was informed she was nowhere to be found. We searched for her, thinking she might have died," he explained, adding that she later contacted him after the incident, indicating that she must have been deceptive regarding her living arrangements.

He also addressed a conversation where someone referred to contacting his brother regarding her supposed marriage. "When they initially contacted me, they mentioned they were planning to marry her off. I was baffled and questioned where such a thing had transpired. After informing them of my location, they insisted I come because they were going to marry her to Ifeanyi. I took it upon myself to tell my brother, who went there, but they misled him as well," he stated.

During the encounter with his brother, she was brought in, and it was then Walida acknowledged her familiarity with him, bursting into tears upon seeing him.

Ibrahim refuted claims that he had not responded adequately to her phone calls. He indicated he only relayed messages after returning home from the market where he was when the calls occurred. "The conversation we had about her mother's death took place after I returned home, not before," he concluded.