OAU law progressive condemns Journalists victimization.

By Oludiran Olusola

The progressive sect of Obafemi Awolowo University Law students has condemned the arrest and victimization of the national journalists by the Nigeria Police Force .

The condemnation was asserted through the press release by the leadership of the organization Co signed by Ilugbo Deborah,  Bin Zak Azeez, Oyeyemi Abass, and Adetola Yussuf on 16th August,  2018, indicting the federal government and Nigeria Police Force for arresting  journalists Jones Abiri and Segun Ogundipe a premium times Journalist who were detained unlawfully and illegally and Kunle Adebanjo a campus journalist of University of Ibadan who was rusticated by the university for publishing a story against the ill doings of the school.
Read the  full press  statement ...

*LAW PROGRESSIVES*

_*Being the Organisational Statement on  Samuel Ogundipe, Kunle Adebajo and Jones Abiri*_

Are We Back to the Dark Ages?

*For Press Freedom!*

The Fourth Estate or the media as you prefer has been the fourth wing in governance that keeps the citizens constantly enlightened on the intrigues of the state. The Fourth estate has refused several attempts to be mortgaged as journalists have constantly dared fear and shunned inducements to ensure the truth gets to the masses even at great personal costs.

For us in the LP, we find it scary that a country which has gone through years of military rule and the attendant injustice is now beginning to manifest some antidemocratic tendencies which especially since the emergence of the Buhari administration have come under full throttle.

Two years ago, Jones Abiri, a journalist in this country was kept locked up without trial. The span of time elapsed yesterday when for no reason he was released. He was released for no reason the same way he was arrested for no reason. As we in the LP believe that when you arrest a person, he must be charged to court for whatever crime it is he was arrested. The issue of Jones Abiri in a shocking manner has had no court sitting and after 2 years of being caged. The same way he was taken in, he was let out.

His release on no grounds lends credence to our position that he was arrested on no grounds and this is painfully regrettable that the APC, a party filled with former NADECO elements such as Bola Ahmed Tinubu who was himself almost killed by a military junta and he had to escape Nigeria on a bike to Benin is now among the leadership of a party and country the wrecks the same on ordinary citizens.

Again, for us in the LP, we find it annoying that Samuel Ogundipe has been held hostage for well over 24 hours and the police through the commissioner has stated it is not afraid of the press.

Samuel Ogundipe published a story on Premium Times and it reflected a document transmitted between the Commissioner of Police and the IGP. He has been held for so long on the insistence of the forces that he discloses his source.

We are certain in the LP by virtue of our academic training as Law Students that an offence does not constitute such until expressly stated by Law. So therefore, there exist no offence such as Source Non-disclosure for which a journalist can be held. He is being held like Jones Abiri for no offence.

Again, we are certain that the actions of Samuel Ogundipe have not created any actionable issue either in Torts or in breach of his civil obligations. He has neither committed libel or defamation  and if the police are insistent on getting him to speak, they will be assaulting Press Freedom.

We do not argue alone to the sympathy of humanism or Human Rights but with the backing of several case laws. We hold the position that the Law protects a journalist against disclosing his source and in celebrated cases and state decisis the law has already let us know its mind on the refusal to disclose a source.He's not bound by any law to disclose his source. See Oyegbemi v AGF (1982) 3 NCLR 895; Innocent Adikwu v Federal House of Reps (1982) NCLR 394; Senate v Tony Momoh (1983) 4 NCLR 269.

Asides these case laws, the Freedom of Information Act signed under what we thought wrongly was the undemocratic Goodluck Jonathan regime but has now become a messiah regime when you compare its approach to Human Rights and that of the 70plus old Buhari- the FOI act sufficiently makes information available to the public on request. Thus, it is not secrecy that a journalist makes public to the citizens what they need to know.

We agree lastly on one point. That the issues of security are confidential. That they should not be made public if they relate with national security. But in event of a leak, we believe the agency should not have a problem with the journalist but rather they should do a sniffing test on their officers especially those who worked in the transmission process of the leaked letter.

Are we back to the dark ages?

We use this occasion to add too that the authorities at the University of Ibadan have suspended after graduation a student of the Faculty of Law who doubles as a journalist. Adekunle Adebajo. He ran a feature story on construction within the University.

*For Press Freedom!*

*SIGNED:*
*ILUGBO DEBORAH*
*TREASURER*

*BIN ZAK AZEEZ*
*HEAD OF RECRUITMENT, LOGISTICS AND PLANNING*

*OYEYEMI ABASS OYENIYI*
*P.R.O Law Progressives*

*YUSUF  ADETOLA YUSLAW*
*Chairman Law Progressives*

#FreeSamuelOgundipe
#FreePress
#FreeKunleAdebajo