The Nigerian National Committee of the International Press Institute, IPI Nigeria, has condemned the abduction of journalist Stanley Ugagbe by security operatives, describing it as a violation of constitutional rights and press freedom.
Preliminary reports indicate that Ugagbe was taken into custody shortly after Secret Reporters, the online platform where he works, published an investigative report. Four unidentified men allegedly picked him up from his Abuja residence on Wednesday.
The Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Secret Reporters, Fejiro Oliver, alleged that officers of the Nigeria Police Force carried out the operation while Ugagbe was returning from an official training programme.
According to Oliver, the operatives went to Ugagbe’s room in Jikwoyi to seize his official laptop and phone before whisking him away to an unknown location. Efforts by lawyers and colleagues to locate him at former SARS facilities, the FCT Police Command, Force Headquarters, and police stations in Jikwoyi and Karu yielded no result.
As of the time of the statement, Ugagbe’s whereabouts remained unknown. IPI Nigeria said he has been denied access to family, lawyers and his employer, in breach of constitutional safeguards.
“At a time when Nigeria continues to grapple with serious security challenges, it is disturbing that security agencies still resort to unlawful arrests and detention practices that disregard constitutional safeguards and due process,” the institute stated.
IPI Nigeria said the continued criminalisation of journalism undermines democracy and damages the international reputation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. It called on the President to direct security agencies to immediately produce Ugagbe, disclose the basis for his arrest, and either charge him in court or release him.
The institute warned against using security agencies to intimidate journalists, stressing that individuals who feel defamed have legal remedies through the courts. It also urged the Inspector-General of Police and heads of other agencies to ensure officers respect the rule of law.
“Journalism is not a crime. A free press is indispensable to democracy,” IPI Nigeria stated.
