The Newspapers Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria; the Nigerian Union of Journalists; and the Nigerian Guild of Editors, among other media industry stakeholders, have demanded a probe into the abduction of FirstNews editor, Segun Olatunji, by the military.

On March 15, 2024, Olatunji was abducted from his Lagos home in Abule Egba by gun-toting men in military uniform.

The former Kaduna State correspondent of The PUNCH, was forcefully bundled into a van parked outside the house situated in Iyana Odo and whisked away.

The International Press Institute, Nigeria, later traced Olatunji to the custody of the Defence Intelligence Agency in Abuja where he had spent two weeks and subjected to inhumane conditions, according to the editor’s narration upon his release.

The DIA is an agency under the command of Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Undiandeye, who, in turn, reports to the Chief of Defence Staff.

Olatunji, who was released after sustained pressure from media stakeholders, including The PUNCH, narrated how he was tied down.

“I was handcuffed and taken straight to the office of the National Air Defence Corps where we waited for three hours. I did not know that they were waiting for an aircraft to pick me up and take me to Abuja.

“I was blindfolded and moved to the aircraft, and we landed in Abuja shortly. I was leg-cuffed also. They removed my clothes and I was left with my boxers. I was taken to Cell 9.

“There, I was left with leg and handcuffs. And at a point, one of the officers came and tightened the right leg and the right hand, and I was there groaning in pain. They did not loosen it until about two or three days later,” he had said.

Following this, media industry stakeholders,  including the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, International Press Institute, Nigeria Chapter, Media Rights Agenda, International Press Centre and a civil society group, Socio-Economic Rights & Accountability Project, condemned Olatunji’s unlawful arrest, detention, brutalisation and torture in response to stories published by FirstNews.

In a joint statement signed by the leadership of the organisations, including NPAN President, Kabiru Yusuf; NGE President, Eze Anaba; and NUJ President, Chris Isiguzo, among others, they demanded a speedy, public, transparent and independent investigation “into this act of barbarism displayed by military personnel as well as the brazen disregard for the Constitution and the government’s obligations under relevant domestic laws and international instruments.”

The statement said, “We further demand that all persons within and outside the military who are found to have been connected with this unacceptable violation of the rights of the journalist and the Constitution, including those who effected Mr. Olatunji’s arrest, detention and torture, those who directly commanded them, and those who ordered or instigated the action, should be prosecuted before the appropriate court and punished to the full extent of the law.

“The Chief of Defence Intelligence, who commands the Defence Intelligence Agency, Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Undiandeye, reportedly ordered the operation that culminated in  Mr Olatunji’s abduction, torture, and detention while the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, to whom the CDI reports, was also reportedly aware of the operation but joined the CDI to claim for days that the journalist was not in their custody. They need to be held accountable for their roles in the matter.

“Armed men wearing military uniforms and who introduced themselves as military personnel from the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Air Force and the Defence Intelligence Agency, led by a military officer, who also introduced himself as Col. Lawal, invaded Mr. Olatunji’s home in a Lagos suburb on March 15, 2024,  seized Olatunji’s mobile phone, handcuffed and bundled him in one of their vehicles and flown, blindfolded to Abuja where he was kept in an underground cell for 14 days.”

They condemned the fact that OLatunji was stripped to his boxers, legs manacled, hands in cuffs, kept incommunicado and not informed of his offence or the reason for his arrest nor of his rights as required by law before he was released on March 29, 2024.

“He was repeatedly interrogated about stories published by FirstNews in the absence of a legal practitioner of his choice because he was not given the opportunity to consult a lawyer. His mobile phone was also unlawfully searched in an effort by his abductors to ascertain the sources of the stories published by the news outlet,” the statement added.

The media stakeholders and SERAP, therefore, demanded that the Federal Government conducted a speedy, public, transparent and independent investigation into the incident in order identify all persons within and outside the military who were connected with the violation of Olatunji’s rights.

They said, “In accordance with Section 35(6) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the Federal Government should pay Mr. Olatunji substantial compensation and issue a public apology to him for the unlawful and unconstitutional violation of his rights as well as the inhuman and degrading treatment to which he was subjected;

“The Federal Government should make an unequivocal public commitment to respect and defend the rights and freedoms of journalists and other media practitioners to carry out their professional duties in a safe and conducive environment in accordance with Sections 22 and 39 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and advise all law enforcement, security, intelligence, military and other agencies accordingly.”

The stakeholders, therefore, “advised any member of the public, dissatisfied or feel the content in a news medium directly affects or involves him or her unfairly, to approach the National Media Complaints  Commission (The National Media Ombudsman) for redress, rather than engage in self-help.”

They noted that should the Federal Government failed to respond positively to all their demands within 14 days from Sunday, the media associations and professional bodies as well as civil society organisations would pursue all available mechanisms at the national, regional and international levels to ensure compliance with the demands.