Embattled
blogger,
Emmanuel
Ojo,
arrested,
detained
and
charged
to court
by the
Police
over a
Facebook
post
alleging
that Ogun
State
Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s wife was arrested in the United
Kingdom for money laundering amounting to $300,000, tells
BAYO AKINLOYE how he was assaulted by policemen

Since September you have been in the news both on traditional
and social media platforms on the allegation that you defamed
the wife of Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, Olufunso.
What is your relationship with the couple?
Even though I have spent my entire life in Ogun State I do
not know them personally.
Even though you do not have a personal relationship, have they
offended you or your loved ones in anyway?
No. I do not see how that can be possible. I am just a
young, ordinary citizen of the state, who is striving to live an
honest and exemplary life.
What exactly led to your arrest by the police?
I will like to state clearly that the matter is before a court of
law which should inform you that responses to your
questions may be limited in scope. I was arrested
concerning a story that went viral online which involved the
First Lady of Ogun State. The accusation against me was
that I maligned the image and personality of the governor’s
wife.

Did you ever write that the governor’s wife was arrested in
London over a $300, 000 money laundering allegation?
The case is in court. I’ll not want to comment on that.
When and how were you arrested?
It was a frightening experience. I was arrested on a
Saturday. I had taken my pregnant wife to her grandfather’s
house. But this is how it all started: after the story went viral
concerning the governor’s wife, news filtered in to me that
the state government was after me. My friends and family
members reported strange faces moving around my house.
I was urged by friends to stay away from home. I stayed
away from Abeokuta, where I live, for two days. After which
I returned not taking seriously what people said about my
safety. Afterwards, I travelled to Abuja for a job opportunity.
There, I received a call from my wife who told me to stay
back in Abuja because three strange men came around to
look for me. My wife stated that they looked and sounded
suspicious. Following this, instead of the one week I
planned spending in Abuja, I had to stay there for two more
weeks. But leaving my pregnant wife alone at home did not
make me feel comfortable. I headed back for Abeokuta after
spending almost a month in the Federal Capital Territory.

Going back to where I started; my wife was with her
grandfather making a meal for him while I sat in my car with
the seat reclined. I noticed a wine-coloured car pass,
slowing down as it did so. I watched the driver of the car
from my side mirror. He was watching me too. But I ignored
that. I was really exhausted on that day. The man drove
back towards my car and stopped. He asked what I was
doing with my car parked on the street. He also asked for
my name which I told him. Then, he mentioned my
surname. Having confirmed my name, he immediately got
down from his car, said I was wanted. ‘Wanted for what?’ I
asked him. Here was a man in mufti with no arrest warrant
and for no reason wanting to pick me up. It was a lonely
street and I was really scared. Before I could say Jack
Robinson, he grabbed hold of my pair of trousers,
manhandling me and trying to force me into his car. I
struggled with him for a while and when I noticed he was
going to overpower me, I screamed for help. At that point,
my wife and grandfather-in-law came out to see what was
happening. The man (who I later found out to be Katib
Biliamin, the Chief Security Officer to the state governor) told
my wife and her grandfather he was not under any
obligation to explain why he wanted to arrest me despite
their pleading for an explanation.

What happened next?
In the ensuing drama, suddenly, a police van pulled up
beside us with three officers jumping out of the van. In the
twinkling of an eye, I was handcuffed and whisked away. As
the policemen were driving away, I heard them say, ‘Where
are we talking him (that is, me)?’ I think the CSO later called
them to take me to Ibara police station. There, I was treated
like a soon-to-be condemned criminal. I was asked a
barrage of questions on the accusation that I wrote
something malicious against the wife of the governor. Later,
the Investigating Police Officer informed me that my case
had been transferred to Eleweran police station. But, before
being transferred I was forced by the police to write a
statement – I had wanted to do so in the presence of my
lawyer.

At Eleweran, I was assaulted by some men. There was a
man in mufti that I can only identify as ‘Philosopher’; he
said: ‘Do you know who you are dealing with in this matter?
May God deliver you!’ And to that I responded, ‘Amen.’
Then, the next thing I heard was ‘gbam!’ a swift and hard
slap on my face that left me almost urinating in my pants.
There and then, I knew I was in real trouble. But that was
not the only time I was physically assaulted and treated like
a criminal by the policemen. With the first statement written
at Ibara apparently discarded, I was asked to write another
statement. This time, the police were dictating to me what I
should write in the statement which I stoutly refused to do.
That drew their ire following which I was once again
assaulted. There were a whole lot of intimidation going while
the police held me in detention for 72 hours without being
allowed to see my lawyer or loved ones. I think all their
attempts were geared at leading me to implicate myself. For
three days, I was not able to eat. I feared for my life; I was
afraid of being poisoned while in detention. I spent three
days in detention without being charged to court.

Were you told Mrs. Amosun filed a complaint against you for
defaming her in your online post?
The whole episode of my arrest and travails at the hands of
the police in Ogun was a curious one. I was never invited for
questioning. I was never informed of any complaint laid
against me. Thus, the question is who is the complainant in
the case? The charge sheet presented to me stated
governor’s wife as the complainant, curiously though it was
the governor’s CSO who wrote a statement against me. I
didn’t see the governor’s wife at the two police stations or
the court I was taken to. I find the whole experience
traumatic –not just for myself but also for my wife who is
pregnant, my aged father and mother. I think the police only
charged me to court following public outrage particularly
from online media. They were forced to charge me to court
because a lot of people spoke out against my continued
detention. I was eventually charged to court and later
granted bail.

Now you must feel like a free man again…
Far from it! Immediately I was granted bail by the court,
reliable sources told me that plans had been perfected to
effect my re-arrest. Without much ado, I had to disguise like
a lady –I had on me gele, iro and buba to escape the clutch
of those who want me arrested without trial by all means.
So I fled Abeokuta to an unknown destination. I do not feel
safe again. Sleep has become a luxury I cannot afford any
more. It is pretty tough to cope with life after my arrest and
detention.

Do you mean there are people still after you?
Yes. I do not know how dangerous these people are. Since I
was released on bail, I have had to move from one location
to another. Right now, my destination remains unknown to
many people.
How is your wife coping with this situation?
I am sad and distraught that I have not been there for her
and she is a mother-to-be. This is the time she needs me
most. We have been married for two years and had yearned
to have a baby. Now the baby is on the way and I have not
had the time to bond with my unborn child. My wife needs
me the most as being her confidant and best friend. My 75-
year-old father lives in fear each day worried about my
safety; the same thing is happening to my mother.
Everyone’s living in fear in my family; they don’t know who
to turn to.
Is there any other way you have been affected by this
experience?
Yes. Because of being unlawfully detained by the police I
lost two job opportunities. Also, not everyone wants to be
closely associated with me out of fear of being intimidated,
assaulted or arrested by security agents.
Some people believe you are working for opposition forces in
the state. Is that correct?
I am a professional. I have no party affiliation, neither am I
being used by any political organisation or individual. I urge
anyone not to play with my life and that of my young
marriage. I do not want anyone to drag me into any political
scheme that may be happening in the state or anywhere.
You have gone to court to sue the police command in Ogun.
Why?
I filed a case against the police suing in damages of
N150m. The case has not been assigned to a judge yet. The
Nigeria Police is a force to be reckoned with on the African
continent. However, out of every 12 disciples, there is
always a Judas. This case is about overzealous security
officers who go out of the dictates of their responsibilities. It
is to send a clear signal to the Nigeria Police that Nigerians
are no longer living in a banana republic where rule of law is
caged and the key thrown into the Atlantic Ocean. This is
actually what I want to prove; what the police had done was
an infringement on my fundamental human rights. It is
paramount to address it – no one should take the law into
their hand.