Ahead of elections, Nigerian journalist Jonathan Ugbal attacked, others denied access
Abuja, February 24, 2023–Nigerian authorities should hold accountable those responsible for beating journalist Jonathan Ugbal, publicly advise political supporters to not attack the press, and not unduly hinder access to election-related sites, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Wednesday, February 22, about 20 supporters of Nigeria’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hit and kicked…
CPJ joins call for Nigeria to maintain internet, social media access during 2023 elections
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined an open letter by the KeepItOn coalition of press freedom and human rights groups on February 16, 2023, calling on Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and other officials to “ensure that the internet, social media platforms, and all other communication channels remain free, open, secure, inclusive, and accessible” during the…
‘Like going to the war front’: Nigerian journalists offer tips for covering 2023 elections
In the early hours of February 1, unknown gunmen set fire to an office of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission and a police station in the country’s southeastern Anambra state. Days earlier, gunmen had attacked and killed soldiers and policemen at checkpoints along a road that connects nearby Enugu and Ebonyi states. The incidents underscored…
Nigerian journalist Saviour Imukudo receives death threats over construction project reporting
On January 5, 2023, Saviour Imukudo, a regional reporter with the privately owned news website Premium Times, received death threats over the phone from the supervisor of an allegedly poorly executed government-commissioned construction project in Nigeria’s southern Akwa Ibom State, according to Imukudo, who spoke with CPJ by phone, and a report he wrote for…
Nigerian journalist Agba Jalingo charged with cybercrime over report on governor’s relative
Abuja, January 26, 2023 – Authorities in Nigeria should swiftly drop the cybercrime charges against journalist Agba Jalingo, cease harassing him for his work, and reform the country’s laws to ensure journalism is not criminalized, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On December 8, 2022, authorities in the southern Nigerian state of Cross River…
Forensic tools open new front for using phone data to prosecute journalists
On April 13, police in Russia’s Khakassiya republic arrested Mikhail Afanasyev and seized his digital devices. Afanasyev, chief editor of the online magazine Novy Fokus, was detained based on an article about riot police in southern Siberia refusing to serve in Ukraine. He faces a possible 10-year prison sentence for spreading “false” information. It’s not surprising for…
Nigerian police detain, charge two journalists for WhatsApp messages
On October 13, 2022, police officers at Ilorin, the capital of the southern Kwara State, detained Abdulrasheed Akogun with his brother Dare Akogun on criminal charges for comments they posted in a popular WhatsApp group titled “Kwara Commission,” according to a copy of the charge sheet reviewed by CPJ and Ibrahim Sheriff Gold, a Fresh…
Nigerian journalist Ayodeji Adebayo detained for 6 days over report about local politician
On September 29, 2022, two police officers arrested journalist Ayodeji Adebayo at the office of the privately owned newspaper The Nation in Wuse, a commercial hub in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, according to Adebayo, who spoke to CPJ by phone, and a report by privately owned Sahara Reporters news website. Adebayo is the publisher of the…
Nigerian journalist Agba Jalingo detained over defamation, cyberattack complaint
Abuja, August 25, 2022–Nigerian authorities should drop all investigations into publisher Agba Jalingo, compensate him for his previous unlawful detention, and stop harassing the journalist, the Committee to Protect Journalist said Thursday. On August 19, a group of about 15 police officers arrested Jalingo, publisher of the privately owned news website CrossRiverWatch, at his home…
Nigerian police arrest newspaper distributor in place of journalist in hiding
Abuja, August 19, 2022—Authorities in Nigeria should immediately drop any criminal libel investigation into journalist Ifreke Nseowo or TheMail Newspaper and pay damages to the newspaper distributor whom they illegally detained to compel Nseowo to appear for questioning, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Friday, August 12, police officers in the southern Akwa Ibom State…