A civil rights advocacy group, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has carpeted the Federal Government for its oppressive policies against some media institutions considered as too independent and rapidly pro-people.

The rights group said it was despicable that barely 48 hours after the United States, through its State Department in its Country Human Rights Report on Nigeria in 2019, issued strong indictment of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for media repression and multiple other human rights violations against Nigerian citizens, the same government has “displayed the most despicable show of force against the media by crudely” expelling reporters of the African Independent Television (AIT) and Punch Group of Newspapers from covering a publicly funded event of the National Communications Commission (NCC).

“This is absolutely condemnable and a vicious show of shame which is not supposed to be associated with a democratic administration.”

HURIWA recalled that the AIT and the Punch Newspaper have been barred from covering the Federal Government’s unveiling of 2020-2025 Broadband Plan by President Muhammadu Buhari that held in Abuja.

It alleged that the reporters and cameramen of the two media houses were kicked out of the venue of the event being organised by the NCC based on “order from above” according to security agents.

HURIWA affirmed that the action of the security forces at the instance of President Buhari amounted to some of the worst cases of tyranny and dictatorship because dictators are in perpetual and mortal fear of free and independent media.

“Regrettably, these two media houses are considered as ‘enemies’ of President Buhari by the establishment. This action is a violation of all the fundamental rights provisions including right to dignity of the human person amongst a plethora of other human rights provisions enshrined in Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria of 1999(as amended).

It is also an abuse of power which section 15(5) frowns against absolutely when it obliges government officials to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power. It is a crude abuse of power to prevent the media from covering a public function paid for by the people of Nigeria.

HURIWA lamented that only few days back, the current administration came under the searchlights and hammer of the world’s largest democracy, the United States of America for a range of human rights breaches, including arbitrary detentions of media practitioners but sadly, here are we again witnessing security brutality of media workers only because they are from media houses that the Presidency has been unable to pocket or bribe.

HURIWA said the action of the security forces in barring AIT and the Punch Newspaper from doing their work on behalf of Nigerians totally violates Section 22 of the Nigerian Constitution.

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