Police Charge Broadcaster for ‘Causing Annoyance’ for Lai Mohammed after 17 Days in Detention

Malik Yahya/

Police on Friday arraigned a broadcaster, Rotimi Jolayemi, also known as Oba Akewi, before a federal high court in Abuja for sharing an audio message which could cause ‘annoyance’ and ‘hatred’ for the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

His arraignment came against the backdrop of the public outcry that greeted the report that the journalist had been in police detention beyond the period allowed by law.

As of the time of his arraignment, Jolayemi, who is the Vice-Chairman, Freelance and Independent Broadcasters Association of Nigeria, Osun State chapter, had spent 17 days in detention.

In the charge sheet marked, FHC/ABJ/CB/104/2020, the police alleged that Jolayemi on April 14 shared an audio file in a WhatsApp group,  which subsequently went viral.

In the charge sheet signed by the Prosecuting Counsel, Prosecution Section, Joseph Offor, the police said the act was in contravention of Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes Act 2015.

The charge read, “That you, Jolayemi Oba Akewi, male, aged 43, on or about the 14th day of April 2020 at Osolo Compound Ekan Nla, Kwara State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did send audio message through your Android phone device to a group WhatsApp platform known as ‘Ekan Sons and Daughters’ and which went viral immediately after it was posted for the purpose of causing annoyance, insult, hatred and ill will toward the current Minister of Information and Culture, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention etc) Act 2015.”

The minister, through his spokesperson, Segun Adeyemi, had denied being the mastermind behind the journalist’s arrest and prosecution.