The management of Premium Times has expressed appreciation to everyone that showed support and solidarity when the newspaper’s Publisher, Dapo Olorunyomi and Reporter Evelyn Okakwu were arrested by men of the FCT Police Command on Thursday.
A statement issued on Saturday Managing Editor, Idris Akinbajo reads in full:
“We at PREMIUM TIMES hereby express our profound gratitude to all who showed support and solidarity with us when our journalists, Dapo Olorunyomi and Evelyn Okakwu, were arrested by the Nigerian Police Force on Thursday, January 19, 2017.
“During those hours when our offices were raided and colleagues detained, the world rose in solidarity and stood firmly with us, with everyone not only condemning the attack but also calling for the immediate release of our staff.
“We thank the Nigerian Union of Journalists, civil and human rights organisation, non-governmental organisations, clergymen, legal practitioners, political leaders and officials of government at different levels who played roles, openly or discreetly, in ensuring that our colleagues were freed.
“We thank local and foreign media organisations who reported the event as it unfolded and pressured authorities to do the right thing.
“Our gratitude goes to all human rights groups and other global organisations which in one form or another helped pressured the police, the army and the Nigerian government to let our journalists go.
“We thank individuals at home and abroad who also called in not only to express their support for our work but also demanded that our colleagues be freed.
“We cannot forget our esteemed readers who stood by us during those dark hours. We truly cannot thank you all enough.
“Your solidarity and support showed that PREMIUM TIMES has become a public trust that should continue to play active roles in the affairs of our nation and the world at large, especially as an agent of social change and justice.
“We will continue to do our best in helping to make our nation and the world a better place to live in.
“Despite the ordeals of our colleagues, our spirits remain unbroken in our commitment to strengthening our democracy and promoting good governance in our country.
“We will not be intimidated by any individual, group of individuals or institutions of government into giving up our quest for a country with strong and transparent institutions, and governed in the best possible way. We will continue to do our business legally, professionally and with undiluted patriotism.
“We will continue to adhere to the ethics and tenets of the journalism profession. As usual, in our reportage of events, every side will be always be reflected.
“Let us assure our nation’s political authorities that we at PREMIUM TIMES are partners in promoting the welfare and security of all Nigerians. They should see us as partners who will continue to hold them accountable rather than as adversaries.”
SIGNED
IDRIS AKINBAJO
MANAGING EDITOR
