The attention of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Imo State Council, has been drawn to the arrest and subsequent detention of radio presenter and activist, Mr Chononso Uba otherwise known as Nonsonkwa, by the operatives of the Imo State Police Command on October 20, 2024.
According to a release by the command and made available to the NUJ, the police insisted that Nonsonkwa’s arrest was made possible by a petition signed by a group it identified as “Concerned Citizens” on cyberstalking, character defamation, spreading misinformation and inflammatory statements related to the burning of the National Open University (NOUN) Study Center in Nsu, Ehime Mbano LGA, on September 30, 2024, inciting civil unrest.
As a reputable organization with particular and specialized interests in human rights protection, social crusade as well as upholding the rule of law for the purposes of administering justice, equity and fairness.
In the light of the above, we, the members of Imo State NUJ, fervently ask the Imo State Police Command, to toe the path of integrity and honour by either charging Nonsonkwa to court or granting him bail.
This is so because the command has clarified that the activist was not abducted, even as Nonsonkwa is currently detained at State Headquarters and will be arraigned in court with appropriate charges once a comprehensive investigation is completed.
By the stipulations of law, Nonsonkwa is not supposed to be detained beyond 48 hours before being charged to court, and it is on this foundations we urge the Imo Police Command to be more professional in the handling of the Nonsonkwa affair.
Signed:
Comrade Precious Nwadike
Chairman
Ori Martin
Secretary
