Raped, kidnapped, detained: How authorities are waging war on journalists in Nigeria

From traumatic memories, journalists recounted how they experienced life-threatening ordeals while carrying out their duties with Nigerian authorities. They labeled the country as one of the most unsafe environments for journalism. Despite all the odds, journalists remained steadfast in carrying out their oversight responsibilities.

During the 2023 Kogi Senate election, Oche Akor, a freelance journalist, was busy covering the Senate election in Kogi State when he was attacked by some political thugs. What was his offense? He was taking pictures and audio recordings of the election process.

Oddly enough, a number of police officers joined the attack, kidnapping the journalist and taking him to various locations. They eventually handed him back to the criminals who threatened to kill him and throw him in the river.

“It wasn’t the first time I was attacked. But this time, I was mobbed, my phone was taken and immediately destroyed. It was a traumatic experience that I don’t want to remember,” Mr. Akor said in a serious tone.

“They took me to another location that I didn’t know. Suddenly, I was thrown out of their moving vehicle, and the police warned me to leave the state immediately.”

With no commercial transportation on election day, Mr. Akor had no choice but to call a bike repairman who would take him to another city for an exorbitant fee. “People chased me. And honestly, I really don’t like to talk about it because I’ve been traumatized and scared ever since.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Okor is not alone. Nigeria’s poor relationship with journalists is not surprising. According to Space for Change, the majority of press problems in West Africa occur in Nigeria. There have been 122 cases of attacks on the press and media there.

According to data from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Nigeria is no stranger to attacks on journalists, with at least 24 journalists reportedly killed between 1992 and 2022.

Lurking Behind Cybercrime Laws

Daniel Ojukwu, a reporter from the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) was kidnapped in May by the Intelligence Response Team (housewife) from the Inspector General of Police. He was initially detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Lagos State and later transferred to the National Cyber ​​Crime Centre Threat Response Unit NPF, Abuja.

He was charged with violating the Cybercrime Act 2025, following the publication of news of his investigations that revealed the involvement of a number of government officials in corrupt practices.

His bail was granted after spending nine days in custody, following protests in the country’s capital.

The FIJ journalist told this reporter that his daily activities had come to a standstill; because he could not carry out his duties because he could not access his gadgets or carry out his daily routine activities during his detention in police custody.

“Honestly, I missed a lot. The day I was kidnapped, I was chasing leads. I never finished that story because of that incident. Other stories I was working on were put on hold indefinitely.

“Also, my personal business was disrupted. There was correspondence that I was supposed to do via email, but I couldn’t do it. Likewise, my family and friends had to sacrifice their lives to fight for my release. They lost money, sleep, and opportunities.”

However, the threat strengthened Mr. Ojukwu’s conviction to use the media as a tool for social change despite the physical and mental threats he faced. He said: “The incident prompted me to be more involved in conversations and efforts aimed at enhancing press freedom and strengthening our justice system.”

Before taking office, the current government of President Bola Tinubu promised to always uphold media freedom and respect opinions, both those opposing and those supporting his government.

However, between 2023 and 2024, from Saint Onitsha, the owner of Bayelsa-based Naija TV to Daniel Ojukwu, and beyond, the rights to freedom of expression and media freedom have been repeatedly violated. Hiding behind the Cybercrime Act, security forces have threatened, arrested and detained journalists.

Additionally, the latest report from the Press Attack Tracker under the auspices of the Centre for Journalism and Innovative Developments (CJID) shows that 37 journalists have been attacked under the Tinubu regime between May 2023 and May 2024. State actors and security forces had the highest number of attacks, at seven and 26 respectively.

READ ALSO:Journalist free again 7 days after kidnapping in Kaduna

During this period, no fewer than 11 journalists were reportedly detained in Gestapo-like manner by Nigerian authorities.

More Stories, More Trials

On a fateful Friday, Jamil Ismaila Mabai, a reporter and correspondent for Trust TV, visited the Katsina State Hisbah office to conduct an interview on an incident that claimed the life of a man when a Community Watch Corp member opened fire during a raid to enforce a ban on DJ activities in the state.

Not knowing that it was a trap, he was detained and locked in a cell for an hour upon arrival at the scene, because the Hisbah Public Relations Officer who gave him the appointment did not show up.

“I told them that detaining journalists in their premises without any reason or opportunity to give a statement is a clear violation of press freedom.

But they confiscated my phone and kept me in a cell.

“This whole ordeal raises serious concerns.”

Likewise, Mustapha Usman, a reporter at the International Centre for Investigative Journalism (ICIR) is another journalist who suffered at the hands of FRSC (Federal Road Safety Corps) officials who attempted to illegally seize a car from a woman.

That day, Mr. Usman had just returned from his office. He saw two FRSC officers fighting over the steering wheel with a woman, while others surrounded the car. “Unfortunately, the officers then deflated the tires of the woman’s car,” he said.

“I watched closely and tried to record the incident secretly because I was sure I would be the target of harassment, if I did it openly. And of course none of them knew I was recording the incident until later.”

“One of the officers chased people away, as the situation became tense. They tried to drag me away, but I made them realize that I was a journalist. I showed them my ID, but they didn’t care. They started slapping me. About five of them surrounded me to the point where I couldn’t recognize who was hitting me.”

“I was trying to pick up my ID card from the floor when someone else hit me and took my ID card,” the victim said.

Mr. Usman believes that the officers knew that what they did to the woman was illegal, and they did not want anyone to catch the incident, so they beat her, in order to remove evidence of their illegal actions.

Finally, Mr. Usman sought the intervention of the Sector Director officer before he could retrieve his identity card.

Freedom of the Press and Human Rights Under the Nigerian Constitution

Article 39 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution provides individuals with the freedom to hold opinions, think and express themselves without interference from anyone.

It reads: “Everyone has the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and be influenced by ideas and information without interference.”

While the constitution sets limits on how a person can enjoy these fundamental rights. For example, they must not infringe on the rights of others. However, the same constitution also mandates that authorities must comply with due process of law whenever they enforce a violation of a constitutional provision against a person.

The scenario witnessed in Nigeria tells a different story, as many journalists were illegally arrested in Gestapo fashion and held incommunicado for days without being charged in court. In most cases, the victims were eventually released on bail.

Expert Weighing

A legal practitioner, Emmanuel Okorie, identified abuse of power by state actors as the main reason behind journalists being targeted for harassment in Nigeria.

He argued that there are several laws in Nigeria that are in place and only work against journalists, to silence them. He cited the Cybercrimes Act of 2015 as an example. “Often when individuals try to expose corruption, political actors usually activate the sections of the Cybercrimes Act that deal with defamation to silence them.”

“They also know that even when they go to court, they will not be able to prove the case against their victim. But what they do is, they activate the law and write a petition to the police and the police will arrest the person, claiming that he made a defamatory publication.”

Furthermore, Mr. Okorie, who is also the Coordinator of Hope Behind Bars Africa in Edo State, a non-profit organization that advocates for prison reform and social justice, noted that the implication of this trend is to intimidate journalists from carrying out their duties.

“Journalists will be afraid to cover the news because they know that they might be persecuted, arrested and thrown in jail by people who don’t want their secrets exposed.”

The human rights lawyer urged victims of these threats not to remain silent about the matter, saying they should always approach the courts to seek redress and bring their oppressors to justice, so that they can be held accountable for their evil deeds and prevent similar incidents in the future.

By: Muheeb Mashood

The post Abused, kidnapped, detained: How authorities are waging war on journalists in Nigeria appeared first on Latest Nigeria News | Headlines from Ripples Nigeria.