The Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of the Globalupfront Newspaper (Online), Madu Onuorah, has been abducted by the police from his house in the Lugbe area of Abuja.
The management of the online news platform, in a statement on Thursday, said Mr Onuorah was whisked away at about 6 p.m. on Wednesday in the presence of his wife and children.
He was taken away by “stern looking operatives,” according to the management of the news platform.
It further said Mr Onuorah was neither shown an arrest warrant nor told the reason behind his arrest upon request from the family. He was also denied contact with his lawyer.
According to the newspaper management, they seized Onuorah’s phones, completely cutting him off from communication with people, including family members.
“Nigerian authorities again moved against journalists in the Country on Wednesday, May 22, 2024 as the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of the Globalupfront Newspaper (Online), Mr. Madu Onuorah was whisked away by men of the Nigerian Police Force at about 6pm by ten fully-armed policemen who stormed his residence in Lugbe, Abuja, in two Sienna buses,” the newspaper said.
“To make sure Mr. Onuorah did not get attention or bail, the policemen who arrested him, though not of the Lugbe Police Station, simply dumped him at the Station and left no traces for friends and family members to reach them.
“The Management of Globalupfront Newspapers states as follows: That the Police should release Mr. Madu Onuorah immediately and unconditionally.
“That Mr. Onuorah is an experienced Journalist, former Abuja Bureau Chief of The Guardian Newspaper, former Managing-Director of The AUTHORITY Newspaper, who operates within the ambit of the law.
“That anybody who has any issue against Mr. Onuorah should approach the law court and not turn the Nigerian Police into a Gestapo outfit that bullies a man in the presence of his wife and children.
“That any second Mr. Onuorah spends in police custody constitutes a serious infringement against his fundamental rights and a continuation of the assault on freedom of expression that has become a frequent occurrence in Nigeria recently.”
Recently, a journalist from the Foundation of Investigative Journalism newspaper was picked up by the police and held incommunicado for some days.
