Justice4Olomofe: One year on, when is the change?

Olomofe told CPJ he identified Madubuike to the Police as one of the men behind the attempt on his life. In CPJ’s possession are court documents of a civil law suit Olomofe filed against his attackers which state that Madubuike was present during the meeting Olomofe and Nkpemenyie held with Customs, and who witnessed their […]

Olomofe told CPJ he identified Madubuike to the Police as one of the men behind the attempt on his life. In CPJ’s possession are court documents of a civil law suit Olomofe filed against his attackers which state that Madubuike was present during the meeting Olomofe and Nkpemenyie held with Customs, and who witnessed their assault on June 25. Others implicated in the court documents are Emmanuel Nkemdirim, a deputy Customs comptroller (now retired); Ernest Olottah, Seme Customs Command spokesman (now retired), and Ibrahim Turaki, an Assistant Customs Comptroller in charge of imports at Seme border.
Justice Abdulazeez Anka of the Federal High Court, Lagos State, has fixed September 29, 2016 to rule on the application to relist the civil suit which was struck out on June 16, 2016 on behalf of counsels to Customs and Olomofe’s alleged attackers, according to media reports. Olomofe is praying the court to declare that Madubuike alongside his identified attackers and Customs collaborators infringed on his rights to life, freedom of expression and the press and award special and exemplary damages against them.
On July 4, 2016, CPJ held a meeting with Waheed Odusile, the president of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, and Deji Elumoye, the chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the NUJ. It was resolved that the NUJ would deliver a written petition to Ibrahim Idris, the newly appointed Inspector General of Police, calling on him to depart from his predecessor’s antecedent and ensure justice for Olomofe.
“We will seek audience with the IGP to personally deliver the letter to him,” said Odusile, who is also the president of the Federation of African Journalists. “We will stand in solidarity with Olomofe because a threat or attack to one is threat to all.”
CPJ believes that as the current Nigeria government strives to tackle the country’s socio-economic and political challenges, it can send a strong statement that it is resolute in fighting crime, corruption and ending acts of impunity against journalists by ensuring Olomofe gets the justice he seeks and that his attackers and sponsors are promptly arrested and duly prosecuted.
Anything other than this would sadly re-affirm that Nigeria remains a dangerous place where journalists can be killed and their killers go free, a repugnant record Nigeria currently holds for the third year in a row on CPJ’s Impunity Index.
Nkanga is the West Africa Representative of the Committee to Protect Journalists. CPJ is an independent, non-profit organisation headquartered in New York, that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide. He writes in from Abuja. Follow him on Twitter @nkanga_p and @africamedia_CPJ