Nigerian soldiers, SSS brutalise journalists, September 21, 2016 Samuel Ogundipe
Nigerian Army personnel and operatives of the State Security Service on
Wednesday attacked a news crew putting up at a hotel in downtown Benin,
the Edo State capital, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt...
The crew, which comprised reporters, producers and a driver, arrived in
Benin on Tuesday evening and subsequently checked in at Douban Hotel
along Airport Road, Taiye Garick, the editor of Watchdog Media, told
PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday.
“At approximately 1:45 a.m. soldiers and SSS agents stormed the hotel
and demanded the whereabouts of our reporters,” Mr. Garrick said quoting
witnesses. “They went from room to room dragging them out and
brutalising them.”
Mr. Garrick said his staff were then dragged into a waiting van and
taken to the SSS field office in Benin, where they remained locked as at
7:00 p.m.Wednesday.
Mr. Garrick said the soldiers were attached to “Operation Thunderstorm”
which is being coordinated by the Army’s 4th Mechanised Brigade in
Benin.
The affected journalists and their designations as listed by Mr. Garrick in an email to PREMIUM TIMES are as follows:
Tony Abulu (Production Manager); Richard Hasley (Reporter); Opara Uche
(Reporter); Handy Romeo Eze (Reporter); Kelvin Toryila (Video Editor)
and Lanre Ogunleye, an IT associate.
Others include: Balogun Ehigie (IT ); Kenneth Danpome (Head IT), Mathew (Logistics Manager) and Joe Epi (Driver).
“The journalists were taken away, wearing only boxers after they were
brutalised and their properties including identity cards, laptops and
mobile phones were seized from them,” Mr. Garrick said.
Mr. Garrick said they were in Benin to carry out survey of voters and
report on early preparations of INEC and other stakeholders ahead of the
gubernatorial election holding there on September 28.
Army spokesman, Sani Usman, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES’ request for comment.
The management of Douban Hotel declined comments Wednesday evening.
But Edo State Police Public Relations Officer, Theodore Okafor, confirmed the development to PREMIUM TIMES.
“Some agents of the SSS and soldiers from the 4th Mechanised Brigade
went to the hotel around 10 p.m.,” Mr. Okafor, a DSP, said. “They
searched the hotel and some people were taken away. They’re being
interrogated at the 4th Brigade now.”
Mr. Garrick condemned rising “cases of attacks against free speech” and demanded an immediate release of his staff.
“I am deeply saddened to see that the rising cases of attacks against
journalists, bloggers and other free speech advocates have gotten to my
turn,” Mr. Garrick said. “I never knew it would get to this extent or to
me.”
The onslaught against Watchdog Media crew comes exactly two weeks after
SSS operatives stormed the residence of Emenike Iroegbu, a political
blogger based in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.
Clued from Premium Times
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