Politics
Outrage Over Trial Of Journalist Who Criticised Lai
By Ayodele Oluwafemi
Criticisms have continued to trail the arrest and detention of a Journalist, Rotimi Jolayemi, popularly called Oba Akewi for sharing an audio message, a poem, on WhatsApp, critical of the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
News reports had it that his wife was kept in detention by the Kwara State Police Command from April 29 to May 6, before the appearance of Jolayemi, who had earlier absconded due to fear of being arrested.
Jolayemi was said to have shared an audio message on a WhatsApp platform named, Ekan Sons and Daughters, critical of Lai Mohammed and the audio recordings went viral in some WhatsApp groups.
An action that was said to have resulted to his detention in police custody.
Mohammed’s special assistant Segun Adeyemi has, however, denied claims that his principal ordered the arrest of the journalist.
Jolayemi has been subsequently charged to court for “causing annoyance, insult, hatred and ill will to the current Hon. Minister of Information and Culture, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.”
In the charge sheet signed by the Prosecuting Counsel, Prosecution Section, Joseph Offor, the police said the act was in contravention of Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes Act 2015.
The charge reads, “That you, Jolayemi Oba Akewi, male, aged 43 years on or about the 14th day of April 2020 at Osolo Compound EKan Nla, Kwara State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did send audio message through your android phone device to a group Whatsapp platform known as ‘Ekan Sons and Daughters’ and which went viral immediately after it was posted for the purpose of causing annoyance, insult, hatred and ill will to the current Hon. Minister of Information and Culture, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention etc) Act 2015.”
The charge sheet has now gone viral on the social media.
The development has been trailed with criticisms against Mohammed, especially on the microblogging platform, Twitter, with many Nigerians arguing that the Information Minister once craved himself a niche in reeling out harsh criticisms against opposition parties, and should not be bothered when faced with criticisms.
Some section of Twitter users recounted some of the statements made by the Information Minster when he was in opposition, noting that Mohammed should not arrest those who criticize him.
GWG gathered the following tweets:
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