Force HQ quizzes Fisayo Soyombo over FIJ’s report on ‘fake police camp project’

Fisayo Soyombo, founder of the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), was quizzed at the headquarters of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in Abuja on Monday.

Soyombo, the pioneer editor of TheCable, was said to have received a message from the force headquarters inviting him to Abuja on November 29 — but he was reportedly out of the country at the time.

According to a statement by Tolulope Abimbola, his executive assistant, the invitation is connected to a story published by FIJ about a police camp project approved in 2018 and scheduled to be completed in 14 weeks.

FIJ had, in the report, alleged that Joseph Egbunike — now a deputy inspector-general of police — “in his former role as Commissioner of Police in charge of budget and finance at the Nigeria Police Force headquarters joined other police chiefs to approve more than N1billion for sham police transit camps project in Benue, Bauchi, Plateau, Katsina and Kano State”.

While giving details of the invitation, Abimbola said Egbunike had petitioned the police over the report, which led to Soyombo being grilled by the NPF.

“Soyombo was on a long trip on November 23 when he received an SMS that read: ‘Good Afternoon sir, this office is conducting an investigation in which your name and phone number featured. In view of this, you are to interview the Head, IGP Monitoring Unit on the 29th November, 2021 by 1000hrs at 1st Floor, Force Hqtrs, Abuja. Thanks.’,” the statement reads.

“Knowing he committed no offence, he honoured the police invitation on Monday, days after returning from the trip, only to discover it was in connection to a story exposing the award of transit police camp projects that do not exist to the tune of the contract sums.

“FIJ understands that 11 lawyers loyal to Egbunike petitioned Usman Alkali, the Inspector General of Police, over the story, asking for the ‘prosecution’ of those behind it for defamation under the Penal Code.

“The 11 lawyers loyal to DIG Egbunike are led by one Stefan Onome Okorodudu and they claim to operate under a joint mandate as ‘Concerned Lawyers in defence of the Nigeria Police and its officers from the peddling and publication of falsehood’.

“Meanwhile, the Police have yet to offer any explanations on the use to which the transit camp funds were put, and why the structures in the five states do not represent anything close to the huge sums of money awarded for them.”

Efforts to reach Frank Mba, police spokesman, for comment regarding the invitation were futile as he failed to respond to calls and messages sent to him.

According to a post on the Twitter handle of FIJ, Soyombo was released by the police around 6pm.

“We can confirm that our founder, Fisayo Soyombo, has been released by the Force Headquarters,” the post reads.

“He was released on bail at exactly 6:26om today and is to return on January 13, 2022. Our only offence here is that we published a true story.”