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Army, Premium Times Faceoff: FCT Police Command Sues for Peace

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The police command of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, has urged the management of the Premium Times and the Nigerian Army to resolve and settle their dispute peacefully.

The FCT police commissioner, Mohammed Mustafa, on Friday, January 20, 2017 admonished the military and the media on the need to sustain mutual relationship towards protecting national security and interest.

Mr. Mustafa’s suggestion came when the publisher of Premium Times, Dapo Olorunyomi and judiciary correspondent, Evelyn Okakwu who were arrested on Thursday returned to the Police Command Headquarters on Friday morning.

The commissioner appealed to the two parties to settle their difference amicably and out of court.

The two journalists have been released on bail by the police.

Plain-clothed security officers and armed with search and arrest affidavit had arrested the two journalists at the paper’s head office in Abuja on Thursday before granting them administrative bail late in the evening.

The security men said they were acting on a criminal defamation complaint filed by Usuagwu Ugochukwu, a lawyer who claimed he was representing Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai.

Mr. Ugochukwu claimed in his complaints that by its alleged defamation of Mr. Buratai, the paper’s reporting was “unpatriotic” and amounted to supporting and furthering Boko Haram’s terror campaign in the Nigerian north-eastern zone.

Prominent APC Supporters Write Buhari

A group of journalists, writers and public figures – all of whom campaigned for the All Progressives Congress, APC and the former military dictator during the 2015 elections – has penned an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari over the harassment of journalists by security services.

They cited the two recent examples involving Omoyele Sowore, the publisher of SaharaReporters, who was detained last week, and Dapo Olunroyomi, the publisher of Premium Times, who was arrested and detained for hours on Thursday, January 19, 2017 by the police after a raid was carried out on the head office of his paper.

Both SaharaReporters and Premium Times are partisan and openly supported the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari during the 2015 campaigns and during his presidency. These papers have mostly turned a blind-eye to the human rights abuses and genocide of the Buhari regime and openly endorsed the violation of human rights of Nigerians by the brutal regime. At various times, they have served as mouthpieces for the Buhari regime and played a central role in the extra-judicial media trials of Nigerians under the Buhari dictatorship.

“We are particularly disturbed by the fact that a democratically elected government appears read to trample all over the media when it carries out its duties as stipulated in the constitution. This document is the same one that confers legitimacy and authority on you and the office you hold,” the letter, dated January 20, 2017 said.

Among those who signed the open letter are Kadaria Ahmed, Kayode Ogundamisi, Professor Pius Adesanmi, Sonala Olumhense, Peter Nkanga, Professor Okey Ndibe, Moses Ochonu, Farouk Kerogi, Lola Shoneyin, Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, and Okey Nwagunma.

Additional reports by PR Nigeria

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