War on Terror and Public Right to Know

On January 6, 2019, gun-toting soldiers invaded the Maiduguri and Abuja offices of the Daily Trust newspaper. Computers, voice recorders and other technological gadgets were confiscated during the raid; and the Regional Editor of the Maiduguri office and one reporter were taken into custody by the military operatives. In defence, the Army spokesman justified the onslaught saying that the Daily Trust published a story which violated the Official Secrecy Act. Similarly, in August 2018, Samuel Ogundipe of the Premium Times was arrested by some security operatives who tried to force him to reveal the source of his report.  Following these developments, this edition of Nextier SPD Weekly examines the challenges faced by the media in reporting counterinsurgent operations and makes recommendations on how to ensure a delicate balance between national security and public right to know.

Click here to download report.