Amnesty International on Thursday accused Nigerian government and Cross River state government of manipulating the criminal justice system in order to keep detained Nigerian journalist, Agba Jalingo behind bars.
The human right group said Mr Jalingo’s detention, besides being a stain on Nigeria’s image, “shows just how far authorities can go to silence critics.”
“While Agba Jalingo is detained for his critical opinions, both Cross River and federal governments are collaborating, through the manipulation of the criminal justice system to keep him behind bars,” the Amnesty spokesperson, Sanusi Isa, told reporters in Calabar.Amnesty said Mr Jalingo’s trial falls short of international standard of fairness and has exposed the weakness of Nigeria’s criminal justice system.
“Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State and the government of President Muhammadu Buhari must stop filing bogus and politically motivated charges against critics and start listening to what they have to say.“The case of Agba Jalingo is just one of many cases of blatant violations of the right to freedom of expression and media freedom in Cross River state and several parts of Nigeria.
Governor Ayade recently broke his silence on Mr Jalingo’s case, saying it is the federal government, and not Cross River state government, that is detaining the journalist. “Please ask Agba Jalingo, that CrossRiverWatch, the first person to give him money to set up the office was myself. His official vehicle, it was me. I don’t have to list all of these, he knows that I have funded and supported him, but journalism stops where blackmail becomes part of your strategy.
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