Major Question Arises As Nigerian Police Force Issues Release On Chude Nnamdi’s Arrest And Detention
Following a massive outcry on social media against the arrest and subsequent detention of a popular Nigerian Tweep named Chude Nnamdi, a detailed statement has been released by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to clear the air on the matter.
Signed by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the communique reads:
“The Nigeria Police hereby confirms that one Mr. Chude Franklin Nnamdi with Twitter handle ‘@chude__’ was arrested in Onitsha, Anambra State on the 18th of March, 2023, and he is being investigated by the Nigeria Police Force National Cyber Crime Centre (NPF-NCCC) Abuja, for cyberstalking, pursuant to a complaint received via a petition, about his activities on social media which contravene the provision of Section 24 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 and other criminal laws.
Furthermore, a prima facie case has been established against him while the case file has been forwarded to the Force Legal Department for further action.
The Nigeria Police Force, therefore, urges members of the public to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the law and be aware of the penalties for violating them most especially cybercrime laws with the new trends in the digital media space.
CSP OLUMUYIWA ADEJOBI, mnipr, mipra,
FORCE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER,
FORCE HEADQUARTERS,
Abuja.
22nd March, 2023.”
One major question that now prevails on the lips of many Nigerians is why does this alleged cybercrime unpleasantly coincide with the tweep’s reported brush-in with the Anambra State Governor, Charles Soludo?
You may recall that Chude had reportedly tweeted about the terrible attacks voters were subjected to in Anambra State by armed hoodlums and other miscreants who allegedly attacked people who refused to vote for their preferred candidate. He had also reportedly boldly called out the Governor for failing woefully to protect the citizens and residents of the State as their Chief Security Officer.
The question now is why he was apprehended immediately after those tweets and is being prosecuted for “activities contravening the law on social media,” even though the entire world sees that his tweets were a cry for help and protection from the same law.
This is in no way an excuse for people to subvert or contravene the laws of the land, but we strongly believe that these same laws should never become tools to witch-hunt and settle personal vendettas by “powerful and influential” people, too!
There is a price to pay for everything we all do in life and one day, we will get our due recompense, no matter what.
