The police in Nigeria may be planning to charge one of the country’s most hardworking investigative news reporters, Yussuf Alli, with the colonial sedition law and its modifications Decree 4 of 1984, a legacy of the Muhammadu Buhari draconian years and the Decree 2 of 1992, foisted on the nation by the military President Ibrahim Babangida.
Alli is expected to be charged in an Abuja Magistrate Court this Thursday, and the country’s human right community has raised an alarm that the government is acting in deceit because procedurally, the bail application for the holden offense should have begun from a High Court, not a Magistrate Court.
The police in Abuja released the bureau editor of The Nation, Mr. Yomi Odunuga and the publication’s Deputy Editor, Mr. Lawal Ogienagbon to the Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalist (NUJ, Abuja Chapter), Mr. Jacob Edi, after their attorney, Femi Falana, had taken care of the paperwork on bail application. In total, six out of the seven staff of The Nation arrested by police detectives on Tuesday were released.
Those released are the Deputy Editor, Mr. Lawal Ogienagbon, Head of Abuja Bureau, Yomi Odunuga, News Editor of the newspaper’s weekend titles, Mr. Dapo Olufade, the company’s lawyer, Mr. John Unachukwu, the Chief Security Officer (CSO), Mr. Jide Adegbenjo and the Labour Correspondent, Mrs. Dupe Olaoye Oshinkolu. They were released on bail on Wednesday evening.
The quartet of Olufade, Unachukwu, Oshinkolu and Adegbenjo are expected to report back to the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Alagbon, Lagos, by 12.00pm on Thursday.
Earlier on Wednesday morning, police detectives ransacked the The Nation’s Abuja office following the arrest of four editors of the paper on Tuesday.
Two of the arrested editors, Managing Editor, Northern Operations, Yusuf Alli and Head of Abuja Bureau, Yomi Odunuga, arrived the office with four plain-clothe officers who searched their offices and desk tops of computers in the open office .
Some documents were printed from the computers after which the detectives reportedly headed for the editors houses to continue their search.
However, many observers believe that the continued detention of Mr. Alli, The Nation’s managing editor (Northern Operations) signals the return of the haunting military legacy of keeping secrets and hunting journalists for publishing the truth that would shatter their leadership hypocrisies aimed at creating inequality and perpetuating a culture of corruption.
Newspapers Proprietor Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the International Press Institute (IPI), Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and Amnesty International (AI) among others criticized the arrest and detention of the editors.
The NGE berated the Police for undermining Nigeria’s integrity when it comes to freedom of the press.
It condemned what it called ‘proxy arrest’ of Ogienagbon, Olufade, Alli and Odunuga. They were arrested in lieu of the Managing Director/Editor-in-chief, Mr Victor Ifijeh and Editor Gbenga Omotoso, General Editor, Kunle Fagbemi, Deputy Editor News Adesina Adeniyi, Group Political Editor, Bolade Omonijo, Managing Editor, Waheed Odushile and Administration Manager Folake Adeoye.
A statement by NGE president, Mr Gbenga Adefaye said: “Those who came to effect the arrest were kitted in anti-human trafficking kits.
The drama was irreverent, irrelevant and unnecessary because the law has set out the due process for taking in anyone who has infracted against it.
“In this case, we are not aware that the editors of The Nation newspaper shunned any formal invitation to them with contempt. Those editors, who were invited in Abuja, honored the invitation with dignity and respect to the authority.
“The Attorney-General of the Federation must share blame for the Police misstep in these matters: he ought to have advised the action agency – the Police on the letters of the law which is specific on who is responsible for the content of a newspaper.
“The law does not allow for proxy arrest, which was the past time of dictatorial military regimes. We are 12 years into democratic rule where the rule of law is paramount, where due process, no matter how slow, is compulsory, where self help must be prevented.
“The Nigerian Guild of Editors demands that the arrested and detained editors be released forthwith while the police should follow due process in the discharge of its duties. Anticipatory arrest without a show of court certified warrant is unlawful and oppressive.
“It is an atavistic recline into the cave. Keeping the arrested editors beyond 24 hours without being charged to court is unlawful.
“Nigeria has moved beyond such frontiers and the police is expected to know their limit within the law.
“The place to establish criminality is in the court of law and no one should undermine the due process, in a way to diminish our country in the comity of the civilized nations.”
The NPAN statement expressed grave concern at the police invasion of Tuesday, October 11, 2011, of the Lagos and Abuja offices of The Nation.
The body’s president, Nduka Obaigbena said: “The NPAN said the police action was unhelpful to the atmosphere of free -flow of information being engendered by the historic signing into law, of the Freedom of Information Act , by President Goodluck Jonathan, on May 28, 2011.
“To say that the police action is a set back would be an understatement as it undermines the constitutional right of Nigerians to a free press. At this time when all hands should be on deck to help the police and other security agencies deal with our unprecedented security challenges, pursuing journalists and newspaper houses, instead of terrorists, could only be a major distraction.”
Reacting through a statement by its spokesman, Alison Bethel McKenzie, IPI said: “We are appalled to hear that the police would simply raid the offices of The Nation and start arresting journalists.”
“We are even more appalled that, over 24 hours later, the journalists remain in custody and have not been charged, which is a violation of their rights. Unless police have concrete evidence to prove that these journalists committed a crime, they should release them immediately.
“The Nation and all other news outlets in Nigeria have a right to publish the news, whether or not it embarrasses the president and former president.”
Also yesterday, world human rights body, Amnesty International (AI) urged the National Assembly to adopt a motion imploring the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to fully and promptly investigate all acts of intimidation and violence against human rights defenders and journalists.
Africa Programme Director of AI, Erwin Van Der Borght made the plea when he visited Senate President David Mark in Abuja.
Mark’s Chief Press Secretary Paul Mumeh said in a statement that Borght was of the view that “such investigation would help bring the culprits to book and serve as a deterrent to others.”
“Amnesty International also canvassed that the National Assembly draft a bill to establish a comprehensive witness protection programme for the protection of individuals – including human rights defenders involved in investigations or other proceedings against those accused of human rights violation,” the statement added.
Mark assured the delegation and the international community that Nigeria has resolved to eliminate all forms of human rights abuse in line with global best practices.
The culture of corruption and impunity which the country’s former president, big man Olusegun Obasanjo resorted to in handling the embarrassment arising from the juvenile letter purportedly sent by him to President Goodluck Jonathan to stage a sectional purge of the leadership of government establishment, led to a huge disgraceful outing for the country’s Foreign Affairs minister, Olugbenga Ashiru, who told reporters in New York that he was not aware of the arrest of the editors.
The jury is still out on the legacies of former President Obasanjo and its place in history: he never loved journalists and whether in or out of power, he remains a danger to transparency of power and leadership openness in Africa.