This is a call to action. A call for help. An urgent appeal and request to the Community. To lend us your voice and leverage your connection to help bring attention to the ongoing ordeal of Civil and Human Rights Activists, Journalists and Citizens of Nigeria, as they continue to wage a losing battle against the oppressive and repressive regime of the “Democratic” President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Military-Dictator-turned-Civilian-Oppressor — Major General Muhammadu Buhari (@MBuhari).
NO DONATION IS SOLICITED. NONE IS REQUIRED. The #FreeAgbaJalingo CAMPAIGN NEEDS JUST YOUR VOICE. AND YOUR TIME.
We need your help because this is a struggle we have been losing, and the only wins we have had to-date have been as a result of influences and pressure applied externally. Although I will showcase the travails of only one Victim in this short Diary, please note that there are 100s of other Journalists and 1000s of ordinary Nigerians currently in similar situation.
Why should you be interested? Why should you help? While you owe us no obligations other than your humanity, I’d like to ask you to please look around you. You will likely discover that there is, at least, one Nigerian in your immediate orbit. If they are not your neighbor, they were likely one of your Professors, or Doctors, or something else. Yes, probably one of the “Rich Princes” who want to hook you up with a Sweet Deal via emails. There, I said it.
Perhaps you already know that Nigeria is not only the Country with the largest concentration of Blacks in the world and the largest economy in Africa, and that it is a Country once touted as the “Giant of Africa”, chiefly due to its abundance of natural and human resources. While the promises of Greatness have been filtered away by corrupt, visionless and profligate Leadership, there is still no debating the FACT that the progress of Africa as a Continent is largely dependent on the condition of Nigeria. You can help make Nigeria right by helping us help the Activists on the ground be more successful in their quest to heal Nigeria.
How can you do this? Help us apply Political, Diplomatic, Economic and Public Awareness pressures. Help us bring news and updates (such as the one below) to the attention of external News Organizations and help us amplify the Realities of the Nigerian Journalists and Activists at the receiving end of General Buhari’s Repression and Oppression. FOREIGN pressure and perception have PROVED to be the ONLY things Buhari and his Enablers respond to. Help bring the HEAT.
Mr. Agba Jalingo is a Journalist who has been in confinement on trumped-up charges and has been subjected to comical, incoherent sham literally MASQUERADING as “Prosecution”.
Until his arrest and detention on August 22, 2019, Mr. Agba Jalingo was the Editor-in-Chief of CrossRiverWatch Media Organization. Cross River is a State in Nigeria, and CrossRiverWatch is focused chiefly on reporting on Governance and Public Interests in the State.
On August 16, he was invited to Calabar (the State's Capital) for questioning by the Police on the pretense that the State-owned Bank (Cross River Microfinance Bank) had filed a complaint against him and CrossRiverWatch over a report of alleged corruption involving the bank and the Governor of the State - Benedict Ayade (@ben_ayade). Mr. Jalingo offered to appear for questioning on August, 26th, but the Nigerian Police arrested him in Lagos (Lagos State) on August 22 instead and charged him with the laughable crime of "Conspiracy to cause Unrest and Conduct likely to Cause Breach of Peace". They transferred him to the Anti-cult and Anti-kidnapping Police detention facility in Calabar. He has been in detention since then. He has been tortured, brutalized, denied bailed, charged to Court (only to have the case postponed repeatedly by the Prosecutor and the "Complainant"). The State even once produced Masked "Witnesses" hiding behind screens to testify on their behalf. The current state of affairs is that, since his detention, Agba Jalingo has been deprived of his Liberties, for the offense of "Journalisting While Nigerian" and for being audacious enough to question authorities.
Governor Benedict Ayade (@ben_ayade) has since admitted that the whole basis for the detention was FALSE. He has even pretended to regret the whole thing. Yet, he continues to hold onto Mr. Agba Jalingo.
This is the Lawlessness and Judicial Rascality and Human Rights abuse institutionalized, championed, nurtured and encouraged by the Government of Major General Buhari, and this Agba Jalingo case is but one representation of these daily abuses.
CALL TO ACTION
Agba Jalingo is alive today and not yet "Disappeared", due mostly to the relentless, unceasing and unyielding efforts of his Supporters and people like you. Sadly, many others have not been so fortunate. We NEED YOUR HELP.
Governor Benedict Ayade (@ben_ayade) will be attending the "The 2020 Nigerian American Business Forum Annual Conference" event in Tampa, FL, between Saturday, February 29th and Sunday, March 1st, 2020. The event will be held at The Westshore Grand Hotel (4860 West Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa, FL 33609). Many Nigerian Governors, Policy Makers, Government Officials, Influencers and Business People will be in attendance.
- If you are in the neighborhood, you can help us picket them.
- If you are not in the neighborhood, you can help us share this information to encourage others to come and join our picket.
- You can also help us share this information with Local News Organizations (invited or not) to report on this and consider coming over to help us ask Governor Benedict Ayade of Cross River State, Nigeria (@ben_ayade) WHY he is still detaining Mr. Agba Jalingo, even though he (Governor Benedict Ayade (@ben_ayade)) has now PUBLICLY RECANTED HIS ACCUSATION against Journalist Agba Jalingo.
- If you are connected with Elected Officials in Tampa or anywhere in the State of Florida, you can help us bring Mr. Jalingo's plight (and the plights of other Journalists and Activists in Nigeria) to their attention. They can help #FreeAgbaJalingo by contacting the Organizers of "The 2020 Nigerian American Business Forum Annual Conference" and their Invited Guests and making their opinions known. Or perhaps disinviting them and making them feel overall unwelcome and uncomfortable.
- Anything you can do; wherever, whenever and however you can do it. Help us give Voice to those working against all odds to clean up Nigeria and make Nigeria work.
- PLEASE SHARE this Diary and similar ones as far and wide as you can. Help us shed lights on the Cockroaches undermining the development of a promising and potentially functioning and progressive Country in Africa.
- Help us ask Ben Ayade DIRECTLY on Twitter WHY he is STILL holding Mr. Agba Jalingo.
We need your Voice. We Need Your Help.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for helping. Thank you for supporting Human Rights everywhere.
#FREEAGBAJALINGO #FREENIGERIA