- * NUJ Kicks, Demands Release of Abducted Editor of FirstNews
Other Media Bodies, News Organisations, Eminent Journalists Urged To Put Pressure On Abductors
Olatunji's Wife, Children, Other Family Members Plead For The Intervention of President Bola Tinubu
By Chinwendu Agoha (Media, Society & Governance Reporter)
Barely one week after the editor of First News Online Newspaper, Mr Segun Olatunji, was abducted in Lagos, the authorities of the Nigerian Police Force has ordered an immediate investigation to unravel the whereabout of the missing journalist.
The police, according to its spokesman, Mr Olumuyiwa Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, will contact the Nigerian Army to properly ascertain if the abducted Olatunji was in their custody, since media reports had it that some of those who carried out the abduction operation were allegedly spotted in military uniform.
The First News editor and a former Kaduna State correspondent of The PUNCH Newspapers, Mr Segun Olatunji, was allegedly whisked away on Friday last week (March 15, 2024) at dusk from his residence at Iyana Odo, Abule Egba Area of Lagos, by some yet to be identified 10 armed men some of who were said to be wearing military uniform.
He was allegedly taken to an unknown location. Since then, nothing was heared from him and about him regarding where he is being kept. His whereabout has raised a lot of anxiety and concern in the Nigeria media community. This development has fuelled speculations as to whether he is still alive or dead.
However, the Police Force Spokesman, ACP Adejobi, assured on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, while responding to enquires from the media, that the police would do everything to ensure the release of the stolen journalist. He assured that the police will get to the root of the matter to ensure that Mr Olatunji re-unites with his family and colleagues.
Publisher of First News Newspaper, Mr Daniel Iworiso- Markson, has expressed his deep elation and that of the management of the newspaper at the police investigation of the abduction of the journalist and assurances that he would regain his freedom.
Iworiso-Markson said: “we are beginning to see some action being taken to unravel the whereabouts of Segun Olatunji five days after he was forcefully taken away from his home. “It was expected that this action should have been taken long before now, but nonetheless, we are glad about the decision of the police to take up the matter. We are all worried, and it’s really disheartening that five days after this incident was reported, no action has been taken by the authorities until now. We have been running from pillar to post, seeking help for the release of our editor.
“The family is really traumatized by it all, and with the passing of each day with no sign of Segun’s whereabout. It’s like we are all hanging by a thread. We really hope the police will find and bring him back safely to his family.”
Meanwhile, the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), on Tuesday, demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Mr Segun Olatunji.
In a statement signed by the NUJ's Assistant National Secretary, Akorede Opeyemi, the Nigerian journalist's umbrella body described the brazen abduction of Mr Olatunji as another threat to, and open assault on press freedom in Nigeria.
According to the statement, “The disappearance of Segun Olatunji, the editor of First News newspapers, is another sad reminder of the danger being faced daily by journalists in the line of duty.
“Eyewitness reports had it that Olatunji was taken away last Friday in his Lagos home in the presence of his family by 10 fully armed men, two of whom were dressed in military uniform. Although it is not clear which agency of government was responsible for the arrest of the journalist, we believe that freedom of the press and opinion remain defining elements of the rule of law and democracy.
"For this reason, the Nigerian government needs to work to protect freedom of the press and freedom of movement for media professionals. Safety and security of journalists are very important.
“Actions like this are unacceptable and are attempts to intimidate journalists and force them into self-censorship. The professional work of journalists is clearly in the public interest, and acts of impunity against them should not be condoned.
“Olatunji should be released immediately and unconditionally in the interest of democracy, good governance and the rule of law,” the NUJ insisted.
For some days now since the abduction of the journalist, his family has been in deep emotional turmoil. In a Save Our Soul (SOS) letter to President Tinubu on Tuesday, his wife and children pleaded with the President for his official and fatherly intervention to ensure a speedy return of Mr Olatunji to his family.
However, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of the Nigerian NewsLeader Newspaper and a former colleague of the missing journalist, Mr Celestine Okafor, on Wednesday, pleaded with the media bodies, the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria (BON), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) not to relent until Olatunji regains freedom from his abductors.
Okafor who said that an injury to any journalist in the cause of his job is an injury to every journalist, also pleads with the media bodies, news organisations and eminent practitioners to intensify pressure on both the abductors of Mr Olatunji, the relevant security agencies and the government to take strong action towards securing the release of the journalist.
The Nigerian NewsLeader publisher stated that such abduction of a journalist should not even be allowed to occur under a government led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who, according to him, is believed to be a media friendly president and a member of the media family in Nigeria.
Okafor who stressed the importance and value of journalists in a given society, however, recalled the words of the late elderstatesman, Alhaji Ahmed Joda, at the 1988 Constituent Assembly, when he said that, "When individuals have lost their freedom and rights in a society, it is not only the judiciary but the press (media) that come to their rescue". He pointed out that the freedom of the journalist is the freedom of the entire society.
The NewsLeader Publisher therefore urged the authorities of the Nigerian Police, in collaboration with the Nigerian Army, to strive to redeem it's assurances to the Nigerian people that the stolen journalist will be released to his family and to his employer in good condition. NNL.
