Some plain-clothes policemen on Friday
arrested and whisked to Abuja a journalist based in Uyo, Akwa Ibom
State, Mr. Jerry Edoho.
The young journalist, who is the Deputy
Editor of Ibom Nation Newspaper, a local publication, was arrested by
the security operatives and forcibly taken to the Federal Capital over a
post he allegedly put up on his Facebook page involving Dana Air.
Edoho, had while reacting to a
photograph of a purported crash involving a Dana flight heading to Lagos
from Abuja in which he was tagged, sought clarification from friends on
his list to confirm the authenticity of the story.
He had written, “Rumor via social media
(Facebook) has it that Dana Air enroute Abj-Lag with 153 passengers
crashed killing all on board. Please could someone help verify the
authenticity of this shocking report? Below is (the) pix from the scene
as uploaded on my wall.”
But following a petition by Dana Air to
the police authorities in Abuja after the said photograph became a hot
topic of discussion among a section of Facebook users; Edoho was
arrested in Uyo on Friday and taken to the FCT on a Dana flight
scheduled to leave by 4pm.
Human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, who confirmed the incident to Saturday PUNCH
around 8pm on Friday shortly before leaving Uyo for Lagos, said he saw
three plain-clothes security officers forcibly taking Edoho away while
still at the Ibom International Airport, Uyo.
He said, “Jerry Edoho sighted me at the
Ibom International Airport, Uyo, and alerted me that he was being taken
forcibly to Abuja by a team of plain-clothes security men over a
publication on Facebook.
“He told me that he was tagged in a post
about the recent rumoured crash of a Dana plane, which was false. That,
upon being tagged, he made a post like several other Nigerians asking
whether the crash report was true. The security men were to convey him
to Abuja via a Dana flight that was scheduled to depart by 4pm.
“The security men confronted me for
speaking with him ‘without their permission.’ I retorted that Mr. Edoho
is a citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and that his right to
freedom of expression cannot be taken away. This resulted in an
altercation between me and the security men whose identity I cannot
immediately ascertain. I understand that his arrest followed a petition
by Dana Air to the Nigeria Police Force.
“I am using this platform to urge both
the police and the management of Dana Air to respect the fundamental
rights of Mr. Edoho. He should be released on bail pending the
conclusion of investigation into whatever allegations that have been
made against him. This is a democracy, not a dictatorship.”
When contacted, Spokesperson for Dana
Air, Mr. Kingsley Ezenwa, said he wasn’t aware of the issue but that he
would get back to our correspondent as soon as he was able to confirm
the matter. His response was still being expected as of the time the
paper went to press.
No comments:
Post a Comment