The Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA) has formally referred recent controversies surrounding popular Nigerian singer, Simi, to the state police for investigation.
The controversy erupted on social media after Simi took to her X (formerly Twitter) account to demand that rapists be “castrated and burnt alive.”
Her comments followed public outrage over allegations by a TikToker, Mirabel, who claimed she had been sexually assaulted in her home. However, the online conversation took a sharp turn when unverified reports surfaced suggesting that Mirabel had recanted her allegations.
In response, social media users dug up old tweets from Simi’s timeline. In a 2012 post, the singer tweeted about a four-year-old boy who had a crush on her and was “acting like he wana loc lip.” Another post appeared to joke about the same child “trying to put hand inside my shet.”
The resurfaced tweets sparked massive backlash against the singer. Simi addressed the issue on Monday, explaining that the tweets were never made from a place of perversion and were being taken entirely out of context.
However, the Executive Secretary of the Lagos DSVA, Lola Vivour-Adeniyi, confirmed in an interview with Channels TV that the agency had taken note of the online discussions and initiated action.
Vivour-Adeniyi stated that the agency has referred the matter to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to conduct preliminary inquiries, especially following reports alleging the incidents might have occurred at a creche once managed by Simi’s mother.
“In terms of Simi, some people have been asking what the institutions have been doing. I can speak on what Lagos state has been doing. We have been observing. Because we have seen some tweets as far back as 2012, some as far back as 2014. There were talks about certain tweets being doctored,” Vivour-Adeniyi explained.
“But what we have done is to refer the case to the commissioner of police to at least conduct some preliminary investigations. There are also reports that it might have happened in her mum’s creche.”
The DSVA executive secretary further urged anyone who may have experienced any form of abuse involving the singer to step forward and make a formal statement to authorities.
“In Simi’s case, we cannot act like we have not seen these things. We have a duty to conduct any preliminary investigation. Is there any survivor? Because the truth of the matter is, it is going to be very difficult to prosecute the lady without a survivor being present, a victim of whatever abuse it is,” she added.
“It is to start the process. Encourage anybody who was allegedly assaulted by Simi to come forward and ensure that their statement is taken and we know where we are going.”
