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CP has repeatedly documented the use of Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act to prosecute journalists for their work.
Police officers detain a man in Lagos, Nigeria, on February 25, 2023. Police arrested journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha at gunpoint in Bayelsa State on October 10, 2023, over a report he published about the Presidential Amnesty Program.
, Nigeria, on February 25, 2023. Police arrested journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha at gunpoint in Bayelsa State on October 10, 2023, over a report he published about the Presidential Amnesty Program. Authorities in Nigeria should immediately and unconditionally release journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha, swiftly drop all charges against him, and stop criminalising the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Monday., in the home of his friend Charles Kuboro James in the southern city of Yenagoa, Onitisha’s lawyer Anande Terungwa, and Mr James, told CPJ. Mr James told CPJ that the officers arrived at his house and forced him at gunpoint to phone and summon Mr Onitisha. The officers then forced both men into police vehicles at gunpoint and began driving towards the police station, he said. Mr James said the officers accused him of involvement in a criminal conspiracy with Mr Onitsha and dropped him on the roadside midway to the station. Mr Terungwa said the officers held Mr Onitisha overnight at the Criminal Investigation Department office in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa State, and then flew him to the capital, Abuja, where he remained in detention in the police headquarters.—for which the penalty is a 25 million naira fine and/or up to 10 years in jail—as well as defamation and the publication of defamatory matter under the—for which he could be imprisoned for two years, according to Mr Terungwa and a copy of the charge sheet reviewed by CPJ. “Nigerian authorities should swiftly and unconditionally drop all charges against journalist Saint Mienpamo Onitsha and reform the country’s laws to ensure journalism is not criminalised,” said Angela Quintal, CPJ Africa Program Coordinator, in New York. “The arrest of a journalist at gunpoint sends a chilling message to the press across Nigeria that they will be treated as criminals if their work displeases authorities.”alleging that there was tension in the southern Niger Delta because a man had been killed by security guards outside the offices of theIt said the man, Pere Ebidouwei, had gone to Abuja to submit his documents to the PAP after the government delisted some amnesty program beneficiaries, who receive a, dated September 8, which appeared to be from solicitors working for the PAP, who said Mr Onitsha’s article was defamatory and demanded that NAIJA Live TV publish a disclaimer and apology or face court action., in which he quoted a PAP statement saying that they “decided to discipline” Mr Ebidouwei for trying to force his way into their offices and that when he “pretended to have passed out,” they arranged for him to go to hospital where he was confirmed to be okay.Nigerian police spokesperson Olumuyiwa Adejobi told CPJ that the officers were carrying out their duties by implementing the law and were not to blame for the charges against Mr Onitsha. Mr Adejobi said he was unaware of allegations that the officers aimed their guns at the two men but he would investigate.Mr Onitsha with cybercrimes for his reporting on COVID-19. Mr Onitsha said the case was later withdrawn at the request of the complainant. CPJ’s phone calls and text messages to PAP and email to the solicitor apparently acting for PAP did not receive any response. Good journalism costs a lot of money. Yet only good journalism can ensure the possibility of a good society, an accountable democracy, and a transparent governmentFor continued free access to the best investigative journalism in the country we ask you to consider making a modest support to this noble endeavour. By contributing to PREMIUM TIMES, you are helping to sustain a journalism of relevance and ensuring it remains free and available to all.
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