(MRA/IFEX) – On 21 July 2004, Uja Emmanuel, a correspondent for “The Sun” newspaper in Makurdi, the capital of Benue state, in north central Nigeria, was assaulted and his camera and tape recorder were destroyed by police officers acting on orders of the assistant commissioner of police (ACP), H.C. Ugwu. Emmanuel was assaulted when he […]
(MRA/IFEX) – On 21 July 2004, Uja Emmanuel, a correspondent for “The Sun” newspaper in Makurdi, the capital of Benue state, in north central Nigeria, was assaulted and his camera and tape recorder were destroyed by police officers acting on orders of the assistant commissioner of police (ACP), H.C. Ugwu.
Emmanuel was assaulted when he went to the Benue state police headquarters, along with other correspondents, to investigate the alleged abduction of journalist Johnson Babajide and his subsequent detention by police.
Babajide, a “Nigerian Tribune” newspaper correspondent, was alleged to have been abducted earlier in the day by individuals believed to be acting on orders of the state government and was reportedly severely beaten by thugs said to have been hired by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Emmanuel was at the police headquarters to investigate Babajide’s case when he was confronted by Ugwu. The ACP accused Emmanuel of writing reports on the crisis in Kwande, a local council in Benue state, and of having insinuated that the police state commissioner was not doing enough to control the crisis.
Ugwu reportedly ordered his men to “deal” with Emmanuel. They seized his camera and tape recorder, both worth approximately N60,000 (approx. US$460), and smashed them. The infuriated police officer also reportedly ordered his men to beat up the reporter as a deterrent to others.
Babajide was released later the same day and narrated his ordeal to journalists at the Benue state police headquarters, where he had been detained. He alleged that Tahav Agerzua, the governor’s chief press secretary, came to his house on the morning of 21 July, at about 6:30 a.m. (local time), with over 20 thugs. Babajide, soaked in his own blood, wept as he narrated how Agerzua and the thugs forcefully carried him away.
“They took me to the government house, in Makurdi, where I was asked to wait and see the governor,” Babajide said.
According to Babajide, while waiting for the governor, he was tortured and subsequently dragged to the police headquarters. He said the governor’s special adviser on security, Colonel Edwin Jando (retired), told him that they were acting on orders of the Benue state governor.
Although no official reason was given for Babajide’s abduction, there are indications that the incident may have been connected to a news report published in “The Sunday Tribune” about an alleged attack on Governor George Akume’s house in his hometown, Gboko. In the article, Babajide reported on a shootout at the governor’s house between armed militia involved in the Kwande crisis and government security personnel.
