The invitation was said to have been issued following a request for information made by the organization, YNRO, to the State Ministry of Lands and Survey under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 2011 on petitions and records relating to land disputes in Aniocha South local government area of the state.

In a statement issued in Lagos, MRA described the police action as a gross misuse of power and a blatant attempt to intimidate and harass a citizen for the lawful exercise of his right to request information from any public institution under the FOI Act.

The NYRO had filed an FOI request at the Delta State Ministry of Lands and Survey seeking records and petitions relating to land disputes in the Aniocha South local government area of Delta State.

Rather than the ministry complying with the law by providing the requested information within the statutory seven days or refusing to disclose the information if it had any legitimate grounds to withhold it, it got the Delta State Police Command to issue a summons for Comrade Ojie to appear before the police.

In a “Letter of Invitation”, Ref. No.: CB:3422/SID/DTS/VOL 3/153, dated March 3, 2026,  Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP, Ojokoh Julius, Second-in-Command of the State Intelligence Department of the Police in Asaba, said with reference to Comrade Ojie letter captioned “FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT, 2011, REQUEST FOR ACCESS TO PETITIONS AND RECORDS RELATING TO LAND DISPUTES IN ANIOCHA SOUTH LGA,” he had been directed by the Commissioner of Police, Delta State Police Command, to invite the activist to meet with the Assistant Commissioner of Police, SID, Asaba on the subject matter on Monday, March 9, 2026, at 10.00am.

He told Comrade Ojie in the letter that on arrival, he should contact ASP Njoku Belden to “facilitate the meeting” with the assistant commissioner of police.

In a statement signed by Mr. Ayode Longe, MRA’s Deputy Executive Director, the organisation said: “It is an alarming trend that the Nigeria Police Force, which is tasked with enforcing the law, had become the instrument for violating the rights of citizens under the law.

“The FOI Act is a national law that grants every person a legal right to access information in the custody of any public institution.

“For the Delta State Police to treat a civil request for information made under the Law to a public institution as a criminal matter over which it is issuing an invitation to the requester to report to the Police is a deeply troubling development. We consider it not only as an act of professional ignorance but a deliberate assault on the legal and constitutional rights of Nigerians.”

According to Mr. Longe, Section 1(2) of the FOI Act explicitly states that an applicant for information does not need to demonstrate any specific interest in the information being requested, so there is no basis for Comrade Ojie to be interrogated on the organisation’s request for information.

Besides, he noted, the FOI Act outlines clear circumstances under which a request for information may be denied and provides procedures for any public institution that wishes to deny a request to do so, adding that issuing police summons on the information requester is not among such channels permitted by the Act.

Mr. Longe said: “This incident is a classic example of a culture of impunity within the Police that we have consistently documented and decried.  By summoning Comrade Ojie, the Delta State Police Command is sending a chilling message to members of the public that asking questions about land disputes or any other matter could be treated as a ‘crime’ that would warrant interrogation. This is an attempt to protect potentially corrupt interests under the guise of police procedure.”

He therefore called on the Delta State Commissioner of Police and the Inspector-General of Police to immediately withdraw the summons and ensure that neither Comrade Ojie nor any other official of the YNRO is subjected to any further harassment.

He added that as an institution that has as its core business enforcing the law and bringing others to justice for failure to obey the Law, the Police has a legal and moral duty to ensure compliance with the FOI request as mandated by law, particularly as the FOI Act makes wrongful denial of access to information an offence.

Mr. Longe also urged the Attorney-General of the Federation to intervene in the matter and call the Delta State Police Command to order in his capacity as the principal legal adviser to the Federal Government, the official with a statutory mandate to oversee the implementation of the FOI Act and ensure compliance by all public institutions as well as the official with a general responsibility to ensure that all government actions accord with the law.

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The competition will take place in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from April 20 to 24, 2025.

Both teams trained for two weeks at Rowe Park Sports Centre, Yaba, Lagos, and departed for Abidjan Thursday morning.

Coach John Uzor of the U-18 side selected Joy Omole of Defender Babes and her sister, Shola Omole, alongside Princess Ojie and Fausat Balogun.

Also named are Success Duru, Sharon Okonkwo and Chetachi Ngaodurubie of COAS Babes, among several others.

For the U-20 team, Coach Shittu Agboola has retained most players he nurtured during their U-18 days.

The squad is led by Captain Chidera Ogbusimba and includes her Rima Queens teammates, the Samuel sisters, Amina Mohammed and Joy Peters.

Israel-based Rahima Bello, Kehinde Babatunde of ASPAC HBC, and Benin-based Esther Mathew also kept their places in the squad.

Key player Taiwo Babatunde misses out after Yaba College of Technology refused to release her due to academic commitments.

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Coach Shittu expressed disappointment but remained confident that the team would represent Nigeria proudly, as they had done in the past.

“I’m upset Taiwo won’t be part of the squad as her school refused to release her because she is writing exams.

“We did all we could to secure her release, but they insisted on her staying for academic reasons.

“Nonetheless, the core of the team remains intact and I’m confident we’ll perform well in Abidjan,” Shittu said.

In the U-18 category, Nigeria are in Group A with Ghana, Togo and Burkina Faso.

They will begin against Togo on Sunday at 11 a.m.

They will face Burkina Faso on Monday at 9 a.m., then wrap up group play against Ghana on Tuesday at 11 a.m.

Nigeria’s U-20 team are in Group B with Benin Republic and Togo.

They open against Togo on Monday at 3 p.m.

Their second match comes against Benin Republic on Tuesday at 3 p.m. in Abidjan.

All fixtures are scheduled to be played at the Salle Polyvalente des Parcs de Sport de Treichville Multipurpose Hall.

The U-18 players are: Joy Omole, Angela Ngaodurubie, Shola Omole, Sharon Okonkwo, Princess Ojie, Abigail Nestor, and Fausat Balogun.

Also listed are Salamatu Audu, Mohammed Balikis, Success Duru, Phoebe Oluwalade, Aliya Adebayo, Sarah Peter and Treasure Mike-Osagie.

The U-20 squad includes goalkeepers, Kehinde Babatunde and Precious Samuel, centre back Rahima Bello and right back Esther Mathew.

Others are Ijeoma Izuoba, left back Prudence Samuel, Christiana Michael, Amina Mohammed, and Joy Peters.

Lucy Onyekwere and Aishat Mahmud feature as right wingers, with pivots Marim Ojo and Damilola Akinlade also included.

Source: NAN

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