Ending Orgy of Journalists’Arrests

Nigerians are eager to see how President Bola Tinubu’s recent promise to promote the rule of law and tolerate dissenting views will end the harassment and indiscriminate arrest of journalists by security agents, which escalated since the beginning of his administration, Davidson Iriekpen writes

When President Bola Tinubu pledged last Sunday to promote the rule of law, adhere to the principles of separation of powers, and tolerate dissenting views within the ambit of the laws of Nigeria, many Nigerians were anxious to know whether the security agencies will end their excesses.

President Tinubu who spoke through Vice-President Kashim Shettima when he declared open the Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Lagos, faces increasing criticisms for his administration’s attacks on free press and dissenting voices

Incidentally, a few hours before the president spoke at the event, the Department of State Services (DSS) had arrested and detained a journalist, Adejuwon Soyinka, for six hours

Soyinka, the West African Regional Editor of Conversation Africa and pioneer editor of the BBC Pidgin Service, was arrested at about 5:40 a.m last Sunday, shortly after he arrived at Murtala Muhammed International Airport from the United Kingdom.

DSS said the journalist was held at the request of an unnamed government agency.

Though he was released following the intervention of the International Press Institute (IPI), his International Passport was seized.

Just as the media industry was contending with that, news came that the police arrested and detained an investigative journalist, Isaac Bristol, identified as @PIDOMNIGERIA on X. He was said to have been subjected inhuman treatment after he was abducted on August 5.

Since the inception of the current administration, the military, police, and DSS have been notorious for their Gestapo-like tactics in arresting and unlawfully detaining perceived government’s critics, especially journalists

What started with the arrest of the then Editor of FirstNews newspaper, Segun Olatunji, in March by operatives of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) has become a habit of security agencies to silence journalists and instil fear in them.

Soon after Olatunji’s travails, another journalist, Daniel Ojukwu, was on May 1 abducted by the Intelligence Response Team of the Inspector General of Police

Ojukwu, a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), was said to have gone missing on May 1 with his phone numbers switched off and his whereabouts unknown to colleagues, family and friends. 

However, a few days later, it was discovered that he was being held at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti area of Lagos.

Investigation revealed that Okukwu was held for an alleged violation of the 2015 Cybercrime Act based on a story he wrote.

The Cybercrime Act, a regulatory framework for prosecuting cyber crimes, has become a law used by the federal government to prosecute journalists and media houses.

In March, the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) invited and grilled the Chairperson of FIJ’s Board of Trustees, Bukky Shonibare, in Abuja during which they mentioned a story authored by Ojukwu. The story alleged that the Senior Special Assistant to former President Muhammad Buhari on Sustainable Development Goals (SSAP-SDGs), Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, paid N147 million to a restaurant for the construction of classrooms in Lagos

The police never invited Ojukwu or any other FIJ staff member. 

When Shonibare honoured the police invitation, he was never detained. 

But the story changed when the police decided to abduct Ojukwu instead of formally inviting him. It was not till after 10 days in custody, that he was released

The travails of journalists in the hands of security agencies have suggested that the administration of President Tinubu does not only condone repression of freedom of the press but also encourages it, contrary to the promises he made during his inaugural speech that his administration would uphold fundamental human rights.

The abduction and detention of Ojukwu exactly when the world was celebrating the freedom of the press, raised questions on the federal government’s commitment to the freedom of the press.

The offence for which he is alleged is bailable but he was not offered bail or arraigned in court as enshrined in the laws.

Since journalism plays a critical role in democracy, serving as a catalyst for change and as a watchdog for accountability, the police and other law enforcement agencies must avoid using the Cybercrimes Act to suppress investigative journalism aimed at entrenching a transparent and accountable system. 

Nigeria remains one of West Africa’s most dangerous and difficult countries for journalists, according to the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) which ranked Nigeria 123 of 180 countries in its Global Press Freedom Report for 2023.

The report noted that Nigerian journalists are regularly monitored, attacked and arbitrarily arrested, adding that the “crimes committed against journalists continue to go unpunished, even when the perpetrators are known or apprehended.”

Apart from Soyinka, Ojukwu and Olatunji’s travails, a journalist with The Whistler Newspaper, Kasarahchi Aniagolu; a reporter with Daybreak Newspaper, Achadu Gabriel; a journalist with the Sun Newspaper, Godwin Tsa; an online publisher and journalist, Precious Eze; the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor of Informant247, Salihu Ayatullahi and Adisa-Jaji Azeez, respectively; Publisher of Just Events Online, Abdulrazaq Babatunde, and Publisher of Satcom Media, Lukman Bolakale, among others, were also abducted or detained under President Tinubu’s administration.

In June, the police summoned a Premium Times reporter, Emmanuel Agbo, over a report he was working on.

Last month, on different occasions, operatives of the Nigerian police and the DSS reportedly fired live ammunition and tear gas at journalists and peaceful protesters in a brutal effort to disperse the recent anti-government #EndBadGovernance protests in Abuja.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported that at least 56 journalists were assaulted or harassed by security forces or unidentified citizens while covering the recent anti-government #EndBadGovernance demonstrations.

Many analysts have wondered why security agencies would make journalists their soft targets when bandits and terrorists are running amok in Niger, Zamfara, Plateau, Benue and other parts of the country. They stated that if the same zeal is deployed to arrest criminal kingpins whose gangs had stopped farmers from going to farms, there won’t be hunger in the country.

This is why a former presidential candidate and erstwhile national chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Chief Peter Ameh recently raised the alarm that while journalists and dissenters face crackdowns, bandits and kidnappers continue to operate with impunity. Ameh warned that the government’s actions undermine freedom of speech, limit accountability, and threaten transparency

He criticised President Tinubu’s administration for fostering an environment of self-censorship, damaging public trust in institutions, and deepening societal divisions. According to him, the actions hinder informed decision-making and set a dangerous precedent that could normalise authoritarianism, ultimately threatening the very foundations of democracy.

On his part, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in 2023, Mr. Peter Obi, raised concerns on the egregious attacks on press freedom. He highlighted that the fundamental right to free speech is inextricably linked to the right to access information about government activities and decision-making. 

“The alarming trend of government agents suppressing information unrelated to national security or interest underscores the urgent need for the Freedom of Information Bill. Citizens rely on journalists and the media to hold those in power accountable, particularly when governments err or overreach.

“Investigative journalists, who play a crucial role in uncovering truth, are protected by the laws that guard and protect freedom of expression in a democracy. It is therefore deeply disturbing and unacceptable that Nigerian investigative journalists have of late been subjected to harassment, abduction, detention, and other draconian measures by agents of the government.”