A Civil Society Organization, Action Aids For Transparency and Justice (AAFTJ), has vowed to sue retiring Niger State Chief Judge, Hon. Justice Mohammed Aliyu Mayaki, and the Commissioner of Police in Niger State, Mr. Adamu Usman over unlawful detention of a journalist, according to Capital Post.

The Minna based journalist, Alhaji Uthman Mijinyawa Siraja was reported to have been arrested two weeks ago, as a result of a publication he made stating that the Chief Judge plans to appoint his daughter ahead of other qualified candidates as the Secretary of the State Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

It was reported that the Chief Judge was peeved as a result of the publication, noting that it is malicious and damaging to his reputation.

However, in a statement issued by the CSO which was signed by Mr. Abdulmajeed Jimoh, North Central Director of (AAFTJ) and Jameela Okpanachi, the Head of Legal Services, it was stated that the detention of the journalist is an infringement of his fundamental right.

In addition, they further stressed that the Chief Judge and the Commissioner of Police will be dragged to Court as a result of the unlawful detention.

Meanwhile, the CSO said the publication made by the journalist is a correct representation of facts .

The statement read in part, “We further discovered that the daughter of the outgoing Chief Judge, Aisha Mohammed Aliyu Mayaki was acting as the Secretary of the State Judicial Service Commission (JSC) on level 17 which is the position of Permanent Serectary in the State Civil Service.

“We further learnt from a confirmed authority that an emergency JSC meeting was conveyed on Tuesday last week, and one Abdulrahaman Garafini who was a Deputy Chief Registrar Litigation was hurriedly appointed as the substantive Secretary of the JSC.

“Equally, it was also discovered that the outgoing Chief Judge inaugurated 13 new Magistrates on Friday with his daughter on the first list.

“Our question here is this. Why the Journalist was arrested and detained for doing his work perfectly and professionally.

“Why should the Police Commissioner allowed himself to be used by the outgoing Chief Judge to arrest and detain the Journalist who we even gathered that he has been covering the activities of the Command and the Judiciary for years.

“If the outgoing Chief Judge felt offended with the report, the appropriate thing for him to do is to institute a libel suit against the Media organization and not even the Journalist who was doing his work.

“For all these unlawful detention of the Journalist, we are left with no option than to seek redress against the Chief Judge and the Commissioner of Police for allowing himself to be used to intimidate Alhaji Uthman Mijinyawa Siraja.”

Meanwhile, while narrating his experience, the journalist stated that he was arrested when he honoured an invitation extended to him by the Chief Protocol Officer of the State Judiciary.

“I was invited by the Chief Protocol of the State Judiciary, one Danladi Sallau Pangu for a discussion only for the Chief Protocol who claimed that the Chief Judge alledged that he divulged the information of Niger State Judiciary to me as he was the closest person to the Chief Judge only for me to publish online.

“The Chief Protocol then arranged with the Police from GRA Divisional Police Command where I was whisked away like an ordinary criminal and taken to State Headquarters for onward interrogation and kept in CID custody for three days”, he said.

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