Ojukwu: Foundation demands release of journalist jailed over N147m report - Vanguard News

ABUJA — The Citizens’ Gavel Foundation for Social Justice has demanded the immediate release of journalist Daniel Ojukwu, following a Federal High Court order remanding him at the Kuje Correctional Centre until December 1, 2026.

Ojukwu, a reporter with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), is facing a 12-count cyberstalking charge over reports he published between 2023 and 2024 concerning the expenditure of funds meant for classroom construction by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The office is headed by Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Citizens’ Gavel said the reports questioned an alleged N147.1 million payment to a restaurant for classroom construction in Lagos State, as well as a N47.5 million classroom contract over which questions were raised about the contractor’s status.

The foundation expressed concern that the issues raised in the reports had yet to receive comprehensive public explanations or published findings from any oversight institution.

It said rather than provide answers to the questions surrounding the expenditure, the journalist was facing criminal prosecution, with prosecutors alleging that his reports placed the public official in fear of death, violence or bodily harm.

“This is what the Cybercrimes Act has become, a shield for public officials, not a protection for the public,” the foundation said.

While acknowledging the court’s position that Ojukwu’s bail application was not yet ripe for hearing, Citizens’ Gavel questioned the circumstances surrounding his continued detention.

It recalled that the charge was filed in late 2024 but remained inactive for nearly two years.

According to the foundation, Ojukwu’s defence argued that he complied with his administrative bail conditions throughout the period and was taken into custody only after honouring a police invitation.

It described his remand until December 1 as difficult to justify on grounds of necessity or proportionality.

The foundation also cited previous cases involving journalists, including Tega Oghenedoro, publisher of Secret Reporters, who spent 61 days in detention in 2025 before securing bail over criminal allegations linked to his publication’s reporting.

It further recalled the reported arrest of Stanley Ugagbe, a journalist with the same outlet, by armed men in Abuja in July 2026.

Ugagbe was subsequently charged alongside Oghenedoro over reports alleging that the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Emem Usoro, failed to declare a luxury property in California valued at about N1.4 billion.

The foundation said Ugagbe was also remanded at Kuje after his bail application was adjourned but was eventually released on bail on October 2, 2026.

Although acknowledging differences in the cases, Citizens’ Gavel said they reflected what it described as a pattern of criminal proceedings and detention being used in response to investigative journalism.

“In a constitutional democracy, the answer to questions raised by investigative journalism is transparency, evidence and institutional accountability.

“Where a report is inaccurate, sue for defamation. Demand a correction. Petition the oversight body. Criminal prosecution and pretrial detention should never be the price of good-faith reporting,” the foundation said.

It called for Ojukwu’s immediate release and an earlier hearing of his bail application.

The organisation also demanded an independent investigation into the alleged N147.1 million payment and the N47.5 million classroom contract.

It asked the SDGs office to publish a comprehensive response, supported by relevant documents, explaining who approved the payments, how the funds were disbursed and what they were used for.

“Providing explanations for the use of public funds is an obligation of public service, not a concession to criticism,” it said.

The foundation further called for an end to what it described as the misuse of cyberstalking provisions against journalists and urged a review of the Cybercrimes Act to align it with Sections 22 and 39 of the 1999 Constitution and international human rights standards.

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