A former spokesman of the Atiku/Okowa campaign organization, Daniel Bwala opines that journalists who are involved in criminal activities are not immune to arrest by the security agencies.

This follows the arrest of the whistleblower, PIDOM Nigeria who will reportedly be arraigned in court for allegedly undermining the integrity of government operations through the leaking of classified documents and other cyber-related offenses.

According to Bwala, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration respects the rights of the Nigerian people including the right to free speech.

He made the argument when he appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today program on Tuesday, August 27.

He said, “I will make bold to say that we are making appreciable progress, with respect to free speech. And I can count nothing less than five prominent critics of this government who are walking freely.

“For those who are arrested, you have to deal with it on a case-by-case basis because even if you are a journalist, if you are involved in a crime, you don’t have immunity. That’s the point. Even if you are a lawyer or a journalist, if you are involved in a crime, you don’t have immunity.”

Investigative journalists have been hounded by the Tinubu administration with security agents arbitrarily arresting and detaining them for weeks.

The cases of Juwon Soyinka, Daniel Ojukwu and Segun Olatunji readily come to mind in the catalogue of journalists who have been picked by state security agents of late.

Civil groups like Amnesty International and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) have described the Gestapo-styled arrest of journalists by state security agents as an echo from the past, and a prominent feature of the dark years of military rule. They said the ugly development impugned press freedom 25 years after Nigeria transitioned from dictatorial rule to democratic governance.

However, Bwala said journalists who were unlawfully detained should approach the courts to seek redress.

He said, “The other thing is that we have the courts to preserve the rights of the Nigerian people. If you are unlawfully detained or unlawfully arrested, you can approach the court for the enforcement of your fundamental human rights.

“Unless someone comes with a contrary report, I for one believe that under this administration of President Bola Tinubu, the rights of the Nigerian people are protected.”