Attacks on media professionals and threats against media freedom by state and non-state actors continue to feature prominently in Rivers State, even as the nation prepares for a major election in 2023. The attacks which include abductions, harassment, intimidation and threats of revocation or outright shutdown of broadcast stations, have become the key highlights of the risk factors within the media landscape in the state. Month after month, assault related incidents against media workers and media facilities remain unabated.
In the last six months, five key attacks against journalists and threats to media organizations have occurred. They include:
1. October 5, 2022, Mr Glorious Abel, a director of Operations with the Rivers State Television Authority (RSTV), was in gestapo style, kidnapped from his duty post at 10p.m by armed Police Officers attached to one Senior Pastor of Dynamic Flame of Fire and Miracle Ministries, Apostle U.O. Miracle.
According to journalists working with RSTV, Pastor Miracle and his armed police officers had arrived the RSTV complex claiming they got an SOS call from Mr Glorious Abel. They eventually whisked him away to an unknown location where they tied and brutalized him for having the effrontery to yank-off the senior pastor’s programme from the station’s programming schedule. Mr Abel was eventually dropped off at the RSTV gate after he was given some money by the pastor to treat himself.
2. September 8, 2022, the Rivers State House of Assembly revoked the ownership of 868 plots of land currently occupied by Daar Communications Plc, owners of African Independent Television (AIT), at Ozuoba in Obio/ Akpor Local Government Area of the State. The House accused the company of “wrongful acquisition.”
3. September 3, 2022, the leader of the Grassroot Development Initiative (GDI), a political organ of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Rivers State, violently assaulted Journalist Wilson Ibim, a journalist attached to the state owned Radio Rivers, while carrying out his lawful duties, during a rally organized by the group in Opobo Town, in Opobo/ Nkoro Local Government Area, Rivers State.
4. May 13, 2022, men of the Rivers State Police Command barred journalists from the coverage of the trial of Hon. Farah Dagogo, a national lawmaker and governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), at the Rivers State High Court, Port Harcourt. In the process, Journalist Anita Ogonna of East-West Reporters was violently assaulted with a gun butt by one of the police officers.
5. On Friday, May 13, 2022, the Chief of Staff to the Rivers State Government House was quoted by journalists to have allegedly threatened to shut down Rhythm 93.7 FM, a private radio station in Port Harcourt owned by Silverbird Communications, over the station’s coverage of the trial of Hon. Farah Dagogo, a national lawmaker and governorship aspirant of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).
Spokesperson of the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, who confirmed the brutalization of the RSTV journalist following public outcry, incident said investigation was ongoing but nothing more was heard of the matter.
“The command is aware of the matter and we are investigating. Details of our investigations would be made public in the end,” she was reported as stating.
In a National Network News report, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Rivers State Council, strongly condemned the attack on journalists at the High Court premises by the men of the Rivers Police Command. This came on the heels of expression of deep anger and concerns by practicing journalists in the state, in the wake of growing assaults.
“The NUJ, in a statement by its chairman and Secretary, Comrades Stanley Job Stanley and Ike Wigodo respectively, described the assault and harassment which took place last Friday, May 13, 2022, at the Rivers State High Court during the trial of a federal lawmaker, Hon. Doctor Farah Dagogo, as barbaric, uncivilized and uncalled for.
“How would the police in this modern age, prevent journalists from covering court proceedings to the extent of injuring them and smashing their property? Whose interest was the Police serving by preventing newsmen from covering court proceedings? Even in the Stone Age, when governance was brutish and nasty, this unprofessional conduct by the Police was unexpected.”
“The Union views the action of the Police personnel as irresponsible and uncivilized, capable of eroding the public confidence in them as well as straining the existing cordial relationship between the NUJ and the Rivers State Police Command.
“We, therefore, demand a public apology from the Rivers State Police Command within 48 hours to assuage the feelings of the victims.
“While awaiting the reaction of the Rivers State Commissioner of Police on the matter, the Union requests that those responsible for the attack and assault be made to face the full weight of the law,” the NUJ reaction stated.
“The Council also called on the police authorities in the state, to caution their men against unprofessional conducts especially as the 2023 general elections are fast approaching”.
Those assaulted, harassed and intimidated were Anita Ogona, Allwell Ene of Naija FM, Ayo Odungweru of Wave FM, Chiweta Nwagbara of Love FM, Soibi Oruwari of Nigeria Info, and Monica Ogwa and Chuks Nweke of Rhythm FM.
“We, therefore, demand a public apology from the Rivers State Police Command within 48 hours to assuage the feelings of the victims.
“While awaiting the reaction of the Rivers State Commissioner of Police on the matter, the Union requested that those responsible for the attack and assault be made to face the full weight of the law,” NUJ demanded, and also called on the police authorities in the state to caution its personnel against unprofessional conducts especially as the 2023 general elections are fast approaching.
The public is yet to know if the police authority has taken any real action on the matter.
Mindful of the dangers before Rivers State journalists, questions on their security covering the February 25 and March 11 national and state elections were raised at the just held press week of the Federated Correspondents Chapel with the theme, at the Nigeria Bar Association Conference Hall, in Port Harcourt.
Despite the unabated attacks and threats, the state police command has also not issued any public statement indicating an investigation into the reported attacks. Many senior journalists, who expressed worry, insisted that the state is becoming too hostile for media workers.
The state council of the NUJ had in last September, 2022, while reacting to a call by the Civil Liberties Organization, a human rights organization, for the resignation of the state NUJ chairman, on account of his failure to take actionable steps to mitigate the attacks, said the “Union has its own internal mechanisms in addressing or responding to attacks on their members.”
In response to the attacks, the Civil Liberties Organization had petitioned the Inspector General of Police on May 16, 2022, to mandate the leadership of the Rivers State Police Command, to investigate the frequent attacks on journalists and threats to media freedom. The CLO in its petition stated that the call to investigate the growing attacks in the state, “was to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to protect media freedom and journalists in the discharge of their constitutional mandate as guaranteed in section 22 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).”
The CLO was particularly worried that the attacks if left unchecked, portend a negative implication for the 2023 elections.
The CLO further reminded the IGP of the recent ranking of the ‘World Press Freedom Index’ which ranked Nigeria as, “West Africa’s most dangerous and difficult countries for journalists, who are often watched, attacked, arbitrarily arrested and even killed.”
