Donate
Donate
Search
Home Blog Page 126

Niger Alert: Fifteen radio stations silenced

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Niger’s media regulatory body, the Higher Council on Communication (CSC) has revoked the broadcast licenses of fifteen privately-owned radio stations in the country for “non-compliance with current regulatory requirements.”

The affected stations are: Radio Communautaire in Kornake-Dakoro; Radio Alternative FM in Niamey; Radio Faham FM in Niamey; Radio Communautaire in Mrriah; Radio Horizon FM in Kollo; Radio Horizon FM in Téra; Radio Horizon FM in Tillabéry; Radio Horizon FM in Dosso; Radio Sahara FM in Agadez; RadioSahara FM in Arlit; Radio Bitinkodji FM in Niamey; Radio Sarraounia FM in Madaoua; Radio Madiana FM in Dirkou; Radio Sarraounia FM in Tahoua; and Radio Markassiney in Lossa-Tillabéry.

According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) sources in Niger, the CSC, in a decision dated September 25, 2003, ordered the stations to suspend broadcasting with immediate effect. However, media professional associations in the country issued a statement on September 28, asking the stations concerned to disregard the order and continue operating.

The broadcast licenses, which the current CSC leadership purports to be “null, void and of no effect”, were granted by previous commission members.

The CSC has been going through a crisis lately, leading to the suspension on September 12, of the chairperson, Madam Mariama Keita, by other members of the commission. The decision to withdraw the license of the affected radio stations was, in fact, signed by the interim chairperson of the CSC, Cissé Ibrahim.

The MFWA condemns the clampdown on the 15 radio stations because it undermines democracy, restricts popular participation and denies freedom of expression to ordinary citizens in the country.

Mauritania ALERT: Publication seized

Vivian Affoah
-
0

The Ministry of Interior, Posts and Telecommunications, on Tuesday September 23, 2003, seized Issue No. 80 of the Essahifa, an Arabic-language newspaper.

Authorities at the Ministry claimed that the action was in keeping with Article 11 of the 1991 Law on Press Freedom in Mauritania, Act 91-023, which allows for the seizure, “by order of the Ministry of Interior”, of publications that may be considered “likely to undermine the principles of Islam or the image of the State, to harm the public good, to compromise public order and security.”

According to Yahya Ould Hamoud, editor-in-chief of the newspaper, the Ministry provided no further explanation for the seizure of the publication. However, Hamoud told Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) that the publication in question had carried three different stories that could, conceivably, provide the pretext for the Ministry’s clampdown: one on a Mauritanian opposition politician in exile; another on the soldiers suspected of being responsible for the June 8, 2003 attempted coup on the Taya government; and the third on an Islamic activist arrested in May this year and freed at the end of August.

The frequent application of the 1991 anti-media and anti-freedom of expression law by the Ministry of Interior is an ever-present threat to the growth of media plurality and the expression of alternative views in Mauritania. MFWA appeals to the government of Prresident Maaouiya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya to urgently repeal the repressive media law in Mauritania and allow for the free expression of opinions in the country.

Gambia UPDATE: Editor alleges death threat

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Abdoulaye Sey, the editor-in-chief of the bi-weekly Independent newspaper who was picked up on Friday, September 19, and detained incommunicado until late Monday, September 22, has alleged that personnel of the National Intelligence Agency threatened to kill him if he continued to write critical stories against the Yahyah Jammeh government.

Sey was, indeed, incarcerated at the NIA detention centre in Banjul, in spite of earlier denials by officials of the NIA about knowing his whereabouts.

According to Mr. Sey, he was tortured and made to sleep on the bare floor in a small cell infested with mosquitoes. The NIA agents also interrogated him about an article carried in the September 19 edition of the Independent newspaper, captioned, “Jammeh under the Microscope”, which was considered critical of the President and government.

No official charge has been brought against him.

Nigeria ALERT: Journalist expelled from State House

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Agents of the State Security Service (SSS) on September 17, 2003 expelled Cyril Mbah, correspondent of The Monitor newspaper assigned at the Aso Rock, Nigeria’s seat of government, from the presidential villa.

According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Nigeria, the SSS provided no explanation for the decision. It is believed, however, that the action was in connection with an article in Mbah’s column published in the Sunday September 14, 2003 edition of The Monitor captioned, “OBJ Compels Ministers to Pray”, which was thought to have disparaged the President.

On Monday September 15, 2003, President Olusegun Obasanjo, while receiving in audience, a delegation of the Ogun State Council of Obas, enquired about journalist Mbah. Other journalists covering the meeting replied that Mbah was not at the Council of Chambers, venue of the event.

The SSS subsequently invited Mbah to their office where they seized his press accreditation card. According to Mbah, “They asked me if I am Cyril Mbah and I answered in the affirmative. They asked me to surrender my accreditation card.”

Two operatives then drove him in a Peugeot 504 station wagon out of the presidential villa, explaining that they had been “instructed to escort [him] out of the State House.” “You should not be seen anywhere within the premises henceforth,” they warned.

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is troubled over the recent spate of security intimidation and apprehension of media practitioners in Nigeria. It suggests an insidious but growing intolerance of critical opinions by the government of President Obasanjo.

On August 30, 2003, Tunde Akinleye, a photojournalist with the Daily Independent, was brutally assaulted, to the point of unconsciousness, by 12 mobile police officers belonging to Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s security detail.

Again, on June 1, 2003 police assaulted journalists Funmi Komolafe and Rotimi Ajayi, Labour Editor and reporter respectively, of The Vanguard newspaper, George Oshodi, photographer for the Associated Press (AP) news agency and Ola Awoniyi, local correspondent for the Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Gambia ALERT: Editor missing

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Abdoulaye Sey, editor-in-chief of the bi-weekly Independent newspaper, was on Friday September 19, 2003 arrested by plainclothes security agents from his office in Banjul, capital of The Gambia. More than 72 hours later, his whereabouts are still not known. No reasons have also been given for his arrest.

According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Gambia sources, Sey was picked up at about 6:00 pm and taken away by three people in a black jeep without a registration plate. Although Sey’s “disappearance” bears all the

hallmarks of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), they have denied having custody of him. The police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) have also told his wife and colleagues that they have no idea of his whereabouts.

The MFWA is deeply concerned about the failure of the Gambian security agencies to acknowledge custody of journalist Sey. We are also worried about the worsening legal and institutional conditions for media practice and freedom of expression in the country.

In May last year, the Gambian National Assembly (which has only three members from the opposition) passed into law, the widely discredited National Media Commission (NMC) Act, No 7 of 2002. The Act confers wide-ranging powers of sanction and closure, including provisions to register media houses and media practitioners, and to penalize, fine, suspend and even sentence journalists to terms of imprisonment.

On Thursday, September 11, the vice-chair of the NMC, Ramzia Diab (who is also President Jammeh’s nominated member in the country’s legislature) ordered all independent media houses and practitioners to register with her commission immediately. She indicated that failure to register would be tantamount to an offence liable to fines of not less than 10,000 Gambia dalasis (about US $335) in the case of media houses, and half that amount for individual journalists. In addition, all previous registration documents would be deemed to have been suspended, Ms. Diab threatened.

The MFWA calls on the government of President Yahyah Jammeh to guarantee Sey’s safety, investigate his whereabouts and ensure his immediate and unconditional release. MFWA also appeals to President Jammeh’s government to respect the libertarian intent of Article 207 of the country’s 1997 Constitution, which provides for a free and independent media regime in the Republic of The Gambia.

Niger ALERT: Editor Arrested

Vivian Affoah
-
0

The editor of the weekly L’Enquêteur newspaper, Ibrahim Souley, was on Saturday September 13, 2003, arrested and detained by the Niamey Criminal Investigation Department (CID). The police accused Souley of “inciting ethnic hatred and regionalism”.

According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Niger, Souley’s arrest followed the publication in the latest issue of the L’Enquêteur, of a story which alleged that President Tandja Mamadou had instructed the Finance Ministry to withhold all payments due to Djibo Sakou, a well-known business contractor.

The paper suggested that the President’s directives were occasioned by complaints being made by some businessmen in the east of Niger, who alleged that most public contracts were being awarded to the contractor in question presumably because he hails from the west of Niger.

The MFWA condemns this arbitrary use of state security to harass and silence the media in Niger for any publication that the government feels disillusioned about. We appeal to H. E. President Tandja Mamadou to restrain his state security and encourage them to redress any grievances against the media through the constitutionally mandated organs, such as the Higher Council for Communications (CSC) or the Press Council.

Gambia ALERT: Demand the reopening of Citizen FM Radio Station

Vivian Affoah
-
0

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is gravely concerned about the continued illegal, arbitrary closure of the Citizen FM radio station in Banjul, The Gambia.

For more than two years now, the government of President Yahya Jammeh has stopped the Citizen FM from broadcasting on a false claim that the proprietor has not paid his taxes and license fees. The accusation is a blatant fabrication. The station has neither been charged to court, nor been ordered by any court to cease broadcasting, on this accusation by the authorities.

It appears the President’s office has determined to stop this particular station for motives nobody – except the government – knows. The station and its owner have been harassed and attacked with impunity since it was established.

More than five years ago, armed security personnel raided and forcibly shut down the Citizen FM radio station. On Thursday, February 5, 1998, the proprietor of Citizen FM, Baboucar M. Gaye, was arrested together with his news editor, Ebrima Sillah, and detained for several days at the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) in Banjul following a news item broadcast on the station the previous night. The news item had allegedly implicated an officer at the NIA, Lamin Jobarteh, in an alleged counterfeit scandal. Jobarteh exercised his constitutional right to a rejoinder and his reaction was given the requisite publicity on the radio and in print.

But two days later, on February 7, 1998, the station was forcibly closed down and armed guards stationed on the premises. Baboucar Gaye was charged to court under a 1913 telegraphic law for allegedly operating a radio station without a valid licence, a charge he denied. (The 1913 Act is an archaic colonial law passed before radio broadcasting was invented).

However, on August 28, 1998, a Magistrate Court ruled that the station and its equipment be forfeited to the state. On April 17, 2000, after two years of protracted litigation, a High Court in Banjul heard Mr. Gaye’s appeal. Justice Wallace Grant, Judge of the High Court of the Gambia, quashed the earlier ruling by the Magistrate Court and ordered the Inspector General of Police to return the station’s equipment within seven days.

According to Justice Grant, Gaye was convicted under a colonial legal relic which, measured against the Gambia’s legal regime today, was “not known in law.”

Following the court ruling, the station resumed operation for a brief period and was shut down again by the security operatives on an allegation of non-payment of taxes. Mr. Gaye has denied this and has proof of compliance with the regulations.

The refusal of the Gambia authorities to comply with the High Court ruling is a worrying testament of the intolerant and authoritarian posture of President Yahya Jameh’s government. It is a threat to media freedom and freedom of expression in The Gambia.

The MFWA calls on the government of President Jameh to hands off Citizen FM, and demonstrate a respect for the rule of law and media freedom in the The Gambia.

Nigeria ALERT: Police detain journalist

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Ben Adaji, Taraba State correspondent of The NEWS magazine was, on July 22, 2003, arrested and detained by policemen on the orders of Nwachukwu Egbochukwu, Taraba State Commissioner of Police.

According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Nigeria sources, Adaji’s arrest and detention at the Jalingo state prison is linked to a report which carried his by-line, and which was published in the July 21 edition of the magazine, headlined “Abacha in Police Uniform”. The story is said to have indicted the conduct of the Taraba State police commissioner.

The police hurriedly arraigned him before court (apparently to satisfy the constitutional obligation), without the benefit of legal representation, and subsequently remanded him in custody. Four days hence, Adaji is still in detention.

The arrest and detention of the News correspondent comes barely 24 hours after a police team stormed the head offices of the magazine in Lagos on Monday, July 21 demanding to see the editor over the latest edition of the magazine, dated July 28. The lead story of the edition of the magazine reported what the magazine alleged to be the many shady deals by the Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun. When they did not find the editor, the police team, led by Ighodalo, the Lagos state police command Public Relations Officer, left instructions for him to report to the office of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police.

This is the second time in as many months that Mr. Adaji has been picked up by the police. The journalist was first arrested on June 29, on a trumped-up charge of defamation of character along with the Taraba State chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Silas Jafta, as a result of the planned strike against fuel price increases on June 29.

The police commissioner has threatened to “deal ruthlessly with” Adaji, whom he publicly referred to as his number one enemy in the state.

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is concerned about the growing evidence of intolerance of critical opinion by the Taraba State authorities. MFWA appeals to the government to cause the immediate and unconditional release of journalist Ben Adaji.

Togo UPDATE: Detained journalists on hunger strike

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Three journalists, held at the Lomé civilian prison for over a month now, have begun a 48-hour hunger strike, starting today, Monday, July 14, 2003.

The Managing Director, Philipe Evégnon, and the Editor, Dimas Dzikodo, of the weekly L’Evénement newspaper and Jean de Dieu Colombo Kpakpabia, a reporter with the Nouvel Echo weekly, were arrested and detained for “publishing false information and disturbing public order”. The three detainees say they want to draw public attention to the illegality of their continued detention without trial.

The journalists were arraigned before a Lomé high court last week, but were promptly remanded in prison custody. It is recalled that on June 14, 2003, Dimas Dzikpodo and Jean de Dieu Kpakpabia were arrested in a cyber café while scanning pictures of alleged victims of police repression of opposition demonstrations in Agou, in the plateaux region of Togo, following the controversial June 1, 2003 presidential elections.

Philipe Evégnon was picked up the following day, June 15. The disputed elections returned Gnassingbé Eyadéma, who has been head of state since 1967, to office on another seven-year mandate.

The three journalists were detained for 11 days at the premises of the criminal investigation department (CID) in Lomé, where they were physically tortured for 11 days, before being transferred to the civilian prison. A week after their incarceration at the CID, and following public agitation, Dzikodo and Avégnon were shown to the media. But Kpakpabia was not shown. The CID Commissioner, Têko Koudouovoh Mawuli refused to answer queries from journalists about him.

Later in a communiqué, the police claimed that the pictures were those of “road accident victims”, and that “by publishing [pictures] as proof of an alleged repression of a demonstration, the accused were distorting the truth, misinforming public opinion and inciting communities to revolt and vengeance.”

At least one of the accused, Dimas Djikodo, has denied the charges. Nothing has since been heard of Kpakpabia. The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) appeals to the Togolese authorities to urgently bring the three detained journalists to trial by an independent court, or ensure their prompt and unconditional release.

Nigeria ALERT: Journalists injured in police brutalities

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Police personnel in Abuja, capital of Nigeria, on Tuesday, June 1, 2003, assaulted journalists Funmi Komolafe, Labour Editor of The Vanguard newspaper, Rotimi Ajayi, also a reporter with The Vanguard, and George Oshodi, photojournalist for the Associated Press (AP) news agency.

Funmi Komolafe and Ola Awoniyi, local correspondent for the Agence France-Presse (AFP) were earlier, on Monday, June 30, arrested and detained at the regional police headquarters before being released an hour later.

The police kicked, whipped and battered the journalists with the butts of their guns. They were also dazed with tear gas. Oshodi was severely injured in the eye and is currently on admission at a hospital in Abuja. His digital camera was smashed. Komolafe’s identification papers were also torn up.

The police brutalities come in the wake of the strike action called by leaders of the central labour federation, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in protest against recent petroleum price hikes announced by the government of President Olusegun Obasanjo. Reports say the police crackdown has also led to eight persons dead across the country.

Guinea ALERT: Journalists assaulted

Vivian Affoah
-
0

Azoca Bah, a reporter with the Le Lynx la Lance group and Aboubakar Akoumba, managing editor of the weekly L’Aurore newspaper were, on Friday, June 27, 2003, assaulted by armed soldiers of the presidential guard. Their documents, together with Bah’s camera and films, were also seized and crushed under foot.

According to the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Guinea, the incident occurred in Touba, a provincial town 400 km north-east of the capital, Conakry, where Bah and Akoumba had gone to cover a Koran-reading session for the health of President Lansana Conté and a demonstration by supporters of his candidature in the next elections.

Organizers of the rally were outraged by the presence of the two reporters, whose newspapers they accused of carrying irreverent reports about the President in their previous editions.

It would be recalled that Benn Pepito, editor-in-chief and Cellou Diallo, paparazzo, of the La Lance newspaper, were summoned and questioned for three consecutive days on the 24, 25 and 26 March, 2003, over a photograph of President Lansana Conté, carried in the Issue No. 325 of the paper. Earlier, on March 18, 2003, officials of the Internal Security Service (DST) physically assaulted and excluded Bah and Diallo from a meeting of journalists called by Gen. Conté at the presidential palace.

Recent speculation and public debate about the health of the President have been fueled by the campaign, spearheaded by Elhadj Fodé Soumah, patron of the ruling Party for Unity and Progress (PUP), for the re-election bid of President Conté. Gen. Conté has been head of state in Guinea since 1984 when he led a military coup to take over government following the death of Sékou Touré.

Nigeria ALERT: Bank seeks N1billion libel claim against magazine

Vivian Affoah
-
0

First Bank of Nigeria Plc has sued City People, one of Nigeria’s soft-sell magazines, demanding one billion naira (approximately $7,748,934.52) in “exemplary damages” for allegedly bringing the bank’s reputation to ridicule and scorn.

Also joined in the suit are the editor, Seye Kehinde, and the publishers of the magazine, Media Techniques Nigeria Ltd. The bank claims that the June 11, 2003 edition of the magazine carried a story that libelled the bank and its directors.

In a story captioned “Contract scandal rocks First Bank”, the magazine alleged that the directors of the bank had inflated the contract sum, quoted as N115million, “for civil and electrification repairs for the 12th floor” of the bank’s headquarters in Lagos.

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) acknowledges that claims to pecuniary compensations are a legitimate option for institutions and persons whose name and image may be sullied by libellous publications. However, MFWA believes that such claims ought not to be so punitive as to have the possible effect of liquidating the media or killing their zeal to pursue and report matters of public interest.

While not purporting to question the prerogative of the court, MFWA appeals to the judiciary in Nigeria and West Africa not to encourage actions that could amount to censorship of the media and a muzzling of freedom of expression.

1...125126127...131Page 126 of 131

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Latest insightful articles delivered straight to your inbox

The Media Foundation for West Africa works to promote freedom of expression, press freedom, access to information, internet freedom and media development throughout the 16 countries in the West Africa region–that is the 15 member states of ECOWAS and Mauritania.

Quick Links

Contact Us

Address

Aar-Bakor Street, Ogbojo, Accra, Ghana, West Africa

Telephone

+233 302 555327 | +233 302 955213

Email

info [@] mfwa.org

© 2025 | The Media Foundation for West Africa