Cp apologies to assaulted Journalists

Cp apologies to assaulted Journalists

By Bodunrin Kayode

Commissioner of Police Gombe State Ishola Babaita has pacified members of the Nigerian Union of Journalist NUJ Gombe state by apologizing over the assault of Chika Udenkwo of the African independent television (AIT) and Joseph Atabo, of the Blueprint Newspaper.

The CP also directed the release of the Journalists who were equally arrested after being beaten up for daring to film the planned bulldozing of the campaign office of the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

The CP had to call for the peace meeting when aggrived members of the NUJ matched to his office to protest the arrest of the two journalists man handled for recording the planned demolition of the campaign office of the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Jibrin Barde without no specific reason.

Eye witnesses at the scene told newsmen that “The police protested that the journalists used their phones to videorecord them while carrying out their lawful duty as directed by the government and felt it was wrong for them to record their armed presence.

“However, all the journalists especially the members of the Correspondents chapel went to Pantami Divisional Police Station to protest and thereafter marched to the Commissioner of Police’ office to protest the assault on their rights to do their jobs.

” On seeing the crowd of our colleagues and realizing the gravity of what the pending campaign for the next General election was about causing to the state capital, the CP apologized over the unfortunate altercation and the journalists have been released.” Said the witness.

Trouble started for the two reporters when they went to the scene to do their normal jobs of reporting but were prevented and arrested during the planned demolition of the campaign office of the candidate of PDP Jibrin Barde which generated high tension.

When contacted, Police Pro Gombe Mahid Dooka confirmed that they indeed were in the CP’s office on Tuesday and everything was placed under control, adding that nothing much happened after that.

Security operatives in Nigeria have been placed on red alert in maintenance of peace as some overzealous agencies of government have been looking all out for loopholes to please their political masters towards the pending general election.

A similar situation was averted by the Governor of Borno state Babagana Zulum last week as he directed the urban planning board which had gone to seal the property proposed by the New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP) as state Secretariat.

One NNPP official was arrested by the police unlike Barde who called Abuja and a special squad was stationed around the structure believed to be his waiting for another set of armed police men from State command who had been given counter directive by the urban board to effect the bulldozing of the structure

Zulum had stepped in quickly to warn that any attempt to seal the building which the urban board said was rightly for residential purposes and not for politics would bring crisis adding that it was a wrong time to take such a decision.