Alarm has been raised by the media affiliated, pro-democracy organisation HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) about the growing trends of suppression and muzzling of media freedoms and CRITICISMS by governors in Nigeria which has been described as despicable, unconscionable, unconstitutional and therefore must be halted to save Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
HURIWA said constitutionalism and democracy would be destroyed should the growing penchant of governors in different states of the Federation against the exercises of press freedoms and the constitutionally guaranteed rights to freedom of expression as enshrined in section 22 and chapter 4 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria of 1999 as amended is not stopped.
In a media statement endorsed by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA, has asked governors of the 36 states to accommodate free speeches backed up by law and must stop applying draconian steps like the abuse of power by sending armed security agents to clampdown on media practitioners who report about suspected failings of governance in their states even as HURIWA says some governors are in conspiratorial plots with the Nigeria Police Force to deploy the nation’s cyber crime Act as a tool of witch-hunt targeting their critics and independent journalists working in their states.
HURIWA cited Section 22 of the constitution on press freedom as follows: “The press, radio, television and other agencies of the Mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people”. HURIWA quoted Section 39(1) of the Constitution as prescribing that: “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference.”
HURIWA however accused Governors and political elite of hiding under the draconian section 24 of the Cyber Crime Act of Nigeria to criminalise investigations by journalists and to clampdown on independent opinion Moulders and critics because these investigative journalists and critics are exposing the alleged skeletons in the cupboards of these governors and top political office holders just as the Rights group advocated the amendment of the Cyber Crime Act to expunge section 24 and other sections inserted by the framers meant to cage and muzzle press freedoms and activities of independent critics.
Section 24 of the Nigerian cyber crime Act, which HURIWA is advocating its deletion from the Act for suppressing, muzzling and oppressing investigative journalism, provides thus: “Any person who knowingly or intentionally sends a message or other matter by means
of computer systems or network that –
(a) is grossly offensive, pornographic or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character
or causes any such message or matter to be so sent; or
(b) he knows to be false, for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, ill will or needless anxiety to another or causes such a message to be sent:
commits an offence under this Act and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of not more than N7,000,000.00 or imprisonment for a term of not more than 3 years or to both such fine and imprisonment.
(2) Any person who knowingly or intentionally transmits or causes the transmission of
any communication through a computer system or network –
(a) to bully, threaten or harass another person, where such communication places another person in fear of death, violence or bodily harm or to another person;
(b) containing any threat to kidnap any person or any threat to harm the person of another, any demand or request for a ransom for the release of any kidnapped person, to extort from any person, firm, association or corporation, any money or other thing of value; or (c) containing any threat to harm the property or reputation of the addressee or of another or the reputation of a deceased person or any threat to accuse the addressee or any other person of a crime, to extort from any person, firm, association, or
corporation, any money or other thing of value:
commits an offence under this Act and shall be liable on conviction-
(i) in the case of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection to imprisonment for a term
of 10 years and/or a minimum fine of N25,000,000.00; and
(ii) in the case of paragraph (c) and (d) of this subsection, to imprisonment for a term
of 5 years and/or a minimum fine of N15,000,000.00.
(3) A court sentencing or otherwise dealing with a person convicted of an offence under subsections (1) and (2) may also make an order, which may, for the purpose of protecting the victim or victims of the offence, or any other person mentioned in the order, from further conduct which-
(a) amounts to harassment; or
(b) will cause fear of violence, death or bodily harm; prohibit the defendant from doing anything described/specified in the order.
(4) A defendant who does anything which he is prohibited from doing by an order
under this section, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of not more than N10,000,000.00 or imprisonment for a term of not more than 3 years or to both such fine and imprisonment.
(5) The order made under subsection (3) of this section may have effect for a specified period or until further order and the defendant or any other person mentioned in the order may apply to the court which made the order for it to be varied or discharged by
a further order.
(6) Notwithstanding the powers of the court under subsections (3) and (5), the court may make an interim order for the protection of victim(s) from further exposure to the alleged offences,” section 24 of the Cyber Crime Act concludes.
HURIWA lamented that recently, a journalist in Kebbi State was arbitrarily detained after releasing a video showing conditions at a local hospital, drawing criticism from activists and renewed calls for press freedom.
Hassan Mai-Waya Kangiwa was arrested on the orders of state Governor Nasir Idris following circulation of footage filmed at Kangiwa General Hospital. The clip showed an elderly patient lying on a bare metal bed frame without a mattress, according to multiple reports.
The video spread quickly across social media, prompting strong reactions. Users accused state officials of punishing the messenger instead of addressing what they said was neglect in the public health system.
HURIWA said that Kano state is another place whereby media freedoms are viciously attacked just as the Kano State Police command has invited a publisher following a complaint of criminal defamation filed by Abdullahi Rogo, the Director-General of Protocol to the Kano State Governor. The complaint is a direct result of an investigative report by DAILY NIGERIAN which alleged the diversion of N6.5 billion from the DG’s office.
HURIWA recalled that in a press statement released late on Sunday, September 14, 2025, the League of Civil Society Organizations highlighted that the subject of Mr. Jaafar’s publication is already under investigation by federal anti-graft agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The Rights group has therefore condemned the attempt by the Kano State police command to intimidate the journalist just for exposing alleged corruption which two federal anti-graft agencies are already investigating. The police in Kano State shouldn’t be allowed to constitute a cog in the wheel of justice by seeking to arbitrarily arrest or detain a journalist who accused the government of alleged anti-graft offence. We support that the ICPC and EFCC must be allowed to complete their investigation.
Besides, HURIWA said that a former secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Owerri branch, Chinedu Agu, has claimed that the police in Imo State, Nigeria’s South-east, have invited him for allegedly defaming Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State. The lawyer said his invitation by the police was because he authored newspaper publications in which he criticised the alleged undermining of the judiciary of Imo state just as he reportedly accused the Imo state governor of not tackling the security crisis in Imo state headlong.
Mr Agu, a lawyer, posted the police invitation letter on his Facebook page on Friday, 9 September.
In the letter addressed to him, the office of the X-Squad Unit of the police in Imo said they were inviting him over an alleged criminal defamation of character and conduct likely to cause breach of peace.
The police said they were investigating the alleged defamation.
The letter added that the meeting with Mr Agu will be held on Wednesday, 17 September, in the X-Squad office at the police headquarters, Owerri.
The Rights group condemned the Imo state police command for incessantly attacking critics of the Imo state governor just as HURIWA expressed disappointment that press freedoms are emasculated in Imo state which is supposedly the heartland of the South-East of Nigeria just as the Rights group said constitutionalism and democracy can only blossom in the sub-national levels in Nigeria if press freedoms and independent journalists are not deliberately targeted by the powers -that- be.
The Rights group stressed the strategic role of the press to hold the governors accountable for alleged mismanagement of the state and therefore tasked Nigerians to defend the right of the media and critics to hold public office holder accountable.
