The Police say considerable progress has been made in the investigation of the missing Journalist, Mr Tordue Salem after the case was reported on the 15th of this month.
The Force Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Frank Mba stated this while addressing Journalists on a peaceful protest from the Ministry of Women Affairs to the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
He said the police have records of the last calls made by the missing journalist and that lots of efforts were being made behind the scene.
The FPRO said the police were tactically silent due to the sensitive nature of the case.
Mr. Mba gave an assurance that every necessary resource would be deployed in the investigation.
He pledged to strengthen the existing relationship between the police and the media towards ensuring the security and safety of Nigerians.
Leading the protest, the NUJ FCT Council Chairman, Comrade Emmanuel Ogbeche maintained that Mr. Tordue Salem of the Vanguard Newspapers went missing on Wednesday, October 13, 2021, in front of the Total Filling Station less than 100 meters from the Force Headquarters.
Comrade Ogbeche regretted that twelve days after Mr. Salem disappeared, nothing much had happened to indicate whether he is alive or dead; whether he is captive of the State, a non-state, or an alien.
He noted that in the June 2021 report of the Nigeria Union of Journalists and Media Foundation for West Africa, it was revealed that the media recorded seven unresolved killings, 300 violations, affecting about 500 journalists, media workers, and media houses in Nigeria.
Comrade Ogbeche demanded that Mr. Tordue Henry Salem not only be found but that adequate protection be offered to journalists going forward.
He also demanded that the case be transferred to a Special Unit of the IGP while calling for a confidential briefing with his family, leaders of the Union and his employers to calm frayed nerves.
Sandra Udeike reports that the protesting journalists carried play cards with various inscriptions such as ” Free Tordue Salem Now”, “Enough Is Enough”, “Stop Violence Against Journalists” and “Journalism Is Not A Crime”
RN
