Police harassment of journalists fostering climate of impunity, says MRA

Media Rights Agenda (MRA), a civil society organisation (CSO), says the harassment and intimidation of journalists in Nigeria is fostering a “climate of impunity”.

In a statement on Monday, the group warned that the increasing incidents of “arbitrary” arrests and other forms of attacks on media professionals by security agencies pose a threat to press freedom and democracy in the country.

The CSO highlighted the case of three journalists from Alimosho Today, a community news outlet in Lagos, who have been asked to report to the office of the assistant inspector-general of police, Zone 2 Command, on Tuesday, August 27, 2024.

The journalists—Wisdom Okezie, a former reporter; Ayomide Eweje, the managing editor; and Oluwamodupe Akinola, the publisher—were invited for questioning over “a matter reported to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police.”

MRA disclosed that the summons were issued through separate letters dated August 22, 2024, signed by Martin Nwogoh, deputy  commissioner of police, on behalf of the AIG at the Zone 2 headquarters.

It said the letters did not reveal the identity of the complainant or the nature of the information being sought from the journalists.

Reacting to the development, Obioma Okonkwo, head of the legal department at MRA, criticised the police for “becoming a tool in the hands of public officials and powerful individuals seeking to silence journalists”.

“It appears that the police now view journalism as a crime, allowing anyone displeased by a media report to use the force to pursue journalists with uncommon zeal, even as real criminals often go unchallenged,” she said.

She said that the police allegedly use complaints about media reports as a pretext to arrest, detain, or charge journalists to court, without making any effort to verify the accuracy of the stories.

She called on Kayode Egbetokun, the inspector general of police, to take immediate action to curb the misuse of power against journalists.

She noted that the failure to address this issue endangers press freedom and the public’s right to information.