The International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos-Nigeria, through its Safety and Protection of Journalists (SPJ) Hub, has condemned what it described as the “unlawful detention and inhumane treatment” of Sodeeq Atanda, a senior reporter with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ). Atanda was arrested by the Ekiti State Police Command on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, in Ado-Ekiti.
According to information obtained by the IPC-SPJ Hub, the police invited Atanda following a petition from Abayomi Fasina, Vice Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), alleging cyberbullying, blackmail, and criminal defamation. Upon honouring the invitation, the journalist was reportedly detained for over eight hours on the orders of the State Commissioner of Police, Joseph Eribo.
“The police subjected him to inhumane treatment by forcing him to walk barefoot within the premises of the command and also imposed stringent bail conditions,” IPC stated in its account of the incident.
The Executive Director of IPC, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, strongly criticized the action of the police, saying: “This action by the Police is clearly an attempt to further stifle press freedom and intimidate journalists reporting issues of public interest. The Police should desist from being used by elites to assault, arrest and detain journalists. Instead, they should uphold the tenets of democracy.”
The IPC-SPJ Hub also raised alarm over what it described as a pattern of harassment against journalists, citing the case of Abdulaziz Aliyu, a reporter with Waraka Online TV in Kano. The Hub alleged that Aliyu has been repeatedly intimidated and was detained by the Kano State Police Command over a publication.
Confirming the development, Yakubu Salisu, Chairman of the Association of Kano Online Journalists (ASKOJ), told the IPC Press Freedom Officer: “Abdulaziz Aliyu was detained over a story he published some months back.”
Reiterating its position, the IPC-SPJ Hub stressed that the continued harassment of journalists undermines democratic accountability. “If the Police have issues with stories published or with the concerned journalists, the right and lawful process should be taken to seek redress instead of constant self-help,” the Hub stated.