Child Protection Network (CPN) has called for the welfare of a girl at the centre of a dispute over her adoption and custody to take precedence, while raising questions about the process through which she was adopted.
CPN National Coordinator Olakunle Sanni said adoption procedures must be followed to ensure children are placed with families able and willing to provide continuous care.
“Our concern is the child,” Sanni said at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday.
“The legal battle is between adults; the child must not become the battlefield.”
The group said it had followed the case involving lawyer Timipre Wolo and U.S.-based pastor Godstime Pender and that documents in the public domain raised questions about whether the adoption complied with provisions of the Abia State Child Rights Law.
CPN questioned whether the Penders, who were resident in Texas, met requirements relating to residence and prior physical care of the child. It also questioned an adoption order that authorised the child to be taken outside Nigeria, saying this appeared inconsistent with provisions of the Abia law.
Pender and his wife Joyce rely on an adoption order issued by an Abia State Family Court in July 2020. Their account, contained in court documents, is that the child, Jada, was placed temporarily with Wolo in Abuja after COVID-19 restrictions prevented her from travelling to the United States.
Wolo has disputed that account and challenged the circumstances surrounding the adoption and custody of the child.
The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja struck out Wolo’s case in May 2024, holding that it lacked jurisdiction to review an adoption order made by the Abia State Family Court. The court directed that custody be granted to the Abia State Government.
CPN said the prolonged separation of Jada from the Penders who were not resident in Nigeria as at the time of adoption contrary to the provisions of the Abia State Child Rights Law raises concerns about the process and regards for her welfare, describing the separation as potentially amounting to child abandonment.
“Information in the public domain also reveals that the child and the adopters never lived together for many years after the completion of adoption,” CPN said.
“This long separation can be likened to child abandonment, and such definitely is not in the child’s best interest.”
The organisation urged adoptive families living abroad not to leave children in Nigeria with temporary caregivers.
“If you ever have to adopt a child, you must be willing and ready to live together with the child before and after the adoption process is completed rather than procure friends or relatives to undertake an adoption by proxy,” CPN said.
CPN urged the parties and authorities to shield Jada from publicity, social media disputes, and unnecessary exposure, and called on the court and child-protection authorities to ensure that decisions concerning her are guided by her safety, stability, dignity and best interests.
Beyond the case, CPN said its Help Centre had received 36 cases of child abuse in recent months involving physical abuse, neglect, trafficking, sexual abuse, and illegal adoption.
The organisation called for stronger enforcement of child-protection laws, faster investigation and prosecution of offenders, and greater medical, legal, and psychosocial support for survivors. It also urged the government to strengthen measures against child abduction and trafficking and improve education, healthcare, and social support for vulnerable children, including street-connected and Almajiri children.
