...Calls For Understanding Of Journalists’ Role During Emergencies
THE International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos-Nigeria, through its Safety and Protection of Journalists (SPJ) Hub frowns at, and totally condemns police brutality against Daniel Ojukwu, a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) by police officers at Ikeja Police Command in Lagos, while performing his duty on Friday, August 29, 2025.
Information of the Police unwarranted brutality collated by the IPC-SPJ Hub, describes the inhumane treatment of the Nigeria Police Force, who physically and mentally assaulted Daniel Ojukwu, while he was at the police station to meet with the Complaints Response Unit (CRU) and then obtained details of policemen who had extorted money from detainees.
“When he approached the Squad 1 office to ask to see the accused officers, three policemen pounced on him, seized his phone and began going through it,” the information further revealed.
The Executive Director of IPC, Mr. Lanre Arogundade said, “This incessant action or excessive use of force against Daniel Ojukwu is very dangerous to our democracy and a major threat to press freedom. Such acts of brutality also violate the fundamental human rights of the journalist.”
According to Arogundade, Ojukwu’s glasses were shattered, his wristwatch was ripped off, his phone damaged, and he also suffered body injuries of various kinds during the unfortunate incident.
He cautioned: “We urge the men of the Nigerian Police Force to be mindful of events around the world and not continually create an environment where journalists will be afraid to work and discharge their duties effectively and efficiently.
The group, therefore, calls on Benjamin Hundeyin, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) to fulfill his promise of looking into the footage of the CCTV and get to the root of the incident.
“The Police should take adequate and swift measures to bring to book those who violated the journalist while putting in place machinery to compensate Daniel Ojukwu for this inhumane treatment.
“We also call on the Nigeria Police Force to step up the training of its officers to be more respectful and courteous while discharging their duties. They should be reminded constantly that the primary responsibility of the Police is the protection of citizens, including journalists and every other civilian.”
In a related development, SPJ-Hub has called for better understanding of the role of journalists during emergencies to avoid the kind of incident that occurred between the Managing Director of the Nigeria Railways Corporation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa and an editor with Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), who is also a former president of Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Ms. Ladi Bala, following the disruption of rail services between Abuja and Kaduna due to a crash.
Ms. Bala told IPC that she was verbally abused and threatened by Mr. Opeifa who in turn informed IPC that he has offered a verbal apology over the matter.
“Emergency situations would always occur and public officials must always be willing to accommodate journalists’ thirst for credible information at such moments.
“In such circumstance, the public interest dictates that those in authority and security agencies should cooperate with journalists, patiently explain any security concerns and generally refrain from comments or gestures that may be interpreted as threats”, stated Mr. Arogundade.