Police Invite Emmanuel Agbo Of Premium Times Over Yet-To-Be-Published Story

The Nigeria Police Force’s Intelligence Response Team (NPF-IRT) has invited Emmanuel Agbo, a reporter with Premium Times, over a story that he is still working on.Agbo’s ongoing story relates to disputed plum land located in Guzape, Abuja, involving Homadil Realty Limited, a property developer, and a family in the city.To get the company’s reaction to the story, Agbo, according to the media outlet, contacted Bilkisu Aliyu, the company’s chief executive officer (CEO), and she responded to the allegations against her.Surprisingly, the police sent a formal invitation to the reporter through Premium Times without providing adequate context about the petition reportedly being investigated.Premium Times said Ezemba Ezekiel, a police officer attached to the Intelligence Response Team under the office of the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, had previously contacted Agbo informally. But at the request of Agbo for a formal invitation, Ezekiel sent a letter dated May 31 on Monday.Commenting on its readiness to aid police investigations, Premium Times asked to be furnished with adequate information on the alleged petition in order to prepare ahead of June 5, when the reporter is expected to honour appear at the NPF-IRT office.“We have received a letter from you to our reporter, Agbo Emmanuel, in which you invited him to appear before you on 05/06/2024 at your office at ‘IRT Complex, Old Abbatoir by Guzape Junction, Abuja’. We received the letter today, 03-06-2024, although it is dated 31-05-2024,” Idris Akinbajo, the Managing Editor of Premium Times, wrote in a letter delivered to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, IRT, on Monday.“We, Premium Times, are an online newspaper dedicated to using investigative journalism to hold power accountable and deepen democracy as enshrined in Section 22 of the Nigerian Constitution.“We are thus always ready to assist law enforcement agencies in the course of their professional duties. We ask that you provide more details of the petition to enable our reporter, Mr. Agbo, to make adequate preparations and bring along relevant materials when he appears in your office.”Since Kayode Egbetokun became the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), there has been an increasing trend of police attacks on journalists carrying out their legitimate responsibilities.In May, Daniel Ojukwu, an FIJ reporter, was abducted by the police and denied access to his family and employer for days. He was later flown to Abuja after spending days in Lagos custody. Ojukwu was only released after intense local and international media pressure.Before Ojukwu’s release, it was revealed that the police had abducted him based an investigation published in November 2023 showing how the office of Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, the special assistant to the president on the sustainable development goals (SDGs), presided over a fraudulent construction contract awarded to a restaurant in clear violation of procurement regulations.Weeks before Ojukwu’s abduction, the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) had invited Bukky Shonibare, the chairman of FIJ’s Board of Trustees, over an undisclosed petition allegedly written against FIJ and ‘Fisayo Soyombo.Although the author and content of the said petition were not revealed, FIJ strongly believes it was connected to a series of investigations done by Soyombo, FIJ’s founder and editor-in-chief, detailing the activities of Ibrahim Egungbohun, known as IBD Dende, as a large-scale smuggler in the southwestern part of Nigeria.The investigations also exposed the highest echelon of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) as the smuggler’s collaborators at the detriment of the rank and file of the border management authorities, ultimately sabotaging the economic and security conditions of the country.Dayo Aiyetan, the Executive Director of the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), and Nurudeen Akewushola, reporting for the same platform, were also recently detained for nine hours after honouring a police invitation.Their invitation was also in connection with a report showing how Solomon Arase, a former IGP, perpetrated corruption and abuse of office while leading the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).https://fij.ng/article/police-invite-premium-times-reporter-over-yet-to-be-published-story/