There’s No Image To Protect If Children Are Being Kidnapped – Davido

Afrobeats star Davido has explained why he wore pins bearing the names of 39 abducted children and seven teachers during his performance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup countdown event.

According to the singer, he wanted to use the global stage to draw attention to the victims, who are still missing.

Speaking during an interview with Focus on Africa host Waihiga Mwaura, Davido said the safety of innocent children is more important than protecting Nigeria’s image.

He explained that he chose to speak out because many people avoid discussing the country’s security challenges in an effort to protect its reputation. However, he believes there is no point in protecting the country’s image while children are still being kidnapped.

Davido also said that although performing at the World Cup countdown event was a proud moment for him, he felt it was important to remind the world that Nigeria is still facing serious security problems.

He stated, “A lot of people don’t really want to talk about what goes on in my country simply because they want to protect the image, but there’s no image to protect if little kids are being kidnapped.

“As much as I was happy to do the World Cup, we also have to understand that there are things going on back home in our country, which we have the power to let the world know through our own means.

“When I say our own means, where’s my power? My power is in music, performances. We have these students that have been missing, still not found. So yeah, I use my platform to project what’s really going on.”