Political Crackdown on Press Freedom Continues As Police Arrest Journalist, Precious Eze

In what is now identified as a continuous ongoing crackdown on Press Freedom by the Nigeria Police Force and Nigerian Politicians, another journalist and publisher of ‘News Platform,’ Precious Eze, has been arrested.

Eze’s arrest reportedly occurred at his place of residence in Gbagada, Lagos, on Monday, May 27, and was due to a petition by Prince Chris Odinaka Igwe, a businessman with a political inclination with Abia State former governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

On Prince Igwe’s petition, the Nigeria Police Force from Zone 2 Command arrested Eze.

However, Eze published two reports recently on the ‘News Platform‘ titled ‘Gunshots In VGC: MD & CEO Of Mainland Oil & Gas Ltd, Chris Odinaka Igwe Alleged to Have Opened Fire After Dog Encounter Turns Hostile’ and a rebuttal titled, ‘Re-Violent Attack On Dr. Chris Igwe: MD, Mainland Oil & Gas Shares His Own Side of The Story On The Incident.’

The two publications were presumably considered the cause of arrest.

According to a publication by Vanguard, Eze was detained for nearly a week before his colleagues from the Society of Digital Newspaper Owners of Nigeria (SDNON) discovered his arrest and attempted to secure his release on bail but were unsuccessful.

Eze was subsequently arraigned before the Ebute Meta Magistrate Court on May 30, resulting in a judicial rebuke of the police’s actions.

The magistrate dismissed the case, declaring it without merit and affirming that Eze had no case to answer.

Despite this, Eze was returned to custody and re-arraigned before another magistrate on May 31, with the case adjourned to a later date in June.

Meanwhile, in an ongoing assault on press freedom, the arrest of Eze marks yet another attempt to crack down on press freedom in Nigeria.

Other Journalists Arrested or Detained Earlier

Recently, a reporter with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), Nurudeen Akewushola and the Centre’s executive director, Dayo Aiyetan, was detained for hours by the Cybercrime Centre of the Nigerian police. This development led to public outrage and condemnation.

The police also recently detained Daniel Ojukwu, a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism, for days.

In addition, a journalist with PremiumTimes had been invited for questioning over a yet-to-be-published report.

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About The Author

Mayowa Durosinmi

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M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

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