Soldier Assaults TheCable Journalist Over Simple Traffic Remark In Ikeja, Shatters Phone

A serving soldier has assaulted Olalekan Fakoyejo, the assistant business editor of TheCable, over a seemingly harmless remark about traffic obstruction around Ikeja in Lagos State. The incident occurred on Saturday, May 2, as Fakoyejo was making his way from Ikeja to Ogba inside a tricycle popularly known as Keke Napep.

Akahi News gathered that some soldiers were directing traffic when the tricycle conveying the journalist snaked before Pleasant Event Centre, off Ajao Road, Ikeja. What happened next turned a routine journey into a nightmare of military arrogance.

According to eyewitness accounts, a soldier asked another rider to pull over and get aboard his tricycle as punishment. That development snarled traffic even further. The tricycle carrying Fakoyejo was caught up in the ensuing gridlock. Tempers began to simmer.

Displeased by the unnecessary delay, Fakoyejo told other passengers that the soldier was responsible for the standstill. That was all he said. A statement of fact. Nothing inflammatory. Nothing disrespectful. But facts, it seems, are now dangerous in Nigeria.

‘What Gave You The Effrontery?’ – Soldier Drags Journalist Off Tricycle

A dark-complexioned soldier overheard Fakoyejo’s comment. Instead of ignoring it or, better still, clearing the traffic he had caused, the officer ordered the journalist and other passengers to disembark. The atmosphere shifted from frustration to fear.

The soldier dragged Fakoyejo off the tricycle and demanded to know what gave him the effrontery to speak in the manner he did. The journalist stood his ground. He told the soldier that he had done nothing wrong by speaking out. After all, he was merely stating an observable truth.

That response did not go down well. The official grew irate and asked Fakoyejo to report himself to his colleagues who were not close to the scene of the incident. It was a strange instruction. Report himself for what? For being a citizen who noticed a traffic jam?

As Fakoyejo made to explain what had happened to the soldier’s colleague who was approaching, the officer who caused the bedlam dished a slap on the editor. The sound of that slap was not just on the journalist’s cheek. It landed on the conscience of every Nigerian who still believes that citizens deserve dignity.

Akahi News learnt that a video filmed by an eyewitness captured the aftermath. The soldier was seen repeatedly shoving the journalist while attempting to hit him with a cudgel picked from the floor. A cudgel. A weapon. Over a remark about traffic.

Phone Shattered, Journalist Humiliated, Passersby Begged Him To Flee

As the soldier pushed Fakoyejo, the journalist’s phone hit the tarmac. The screen shattered into bits. That phone was not just a communication device. It was a tool of his trade. A lifeline to sources, editors, and deadlines. Gone. In one moment of military rage.

Some passersby thereafter pleaded with Fakoyejo to leave the scene. They knew the score. They knew that arguing with a trigger-happy soldier in Lagos could be the last decision a person ever makes. They begged him to walk away before he was beaten to a pulp or slain by the operative.

But the humiliation did not end there. As the journalist walked off, two soldiers accosted him again. They threatened to whip him into line one more time. The motley crowd pleaded and sought to defuse tension. Civilians begging soldiers not to kill a man for talking about traffic. That is where we are as a country.

This incident occurred just days after a soldier’s bullet cut short the life of a National Youth Service Corps member in Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja. That young corps member is dead. This journalist is alive – but humiliated, battered, and silenced momentarily.

It is not a child’s play to be a journalist in Nigeria today. You can be assaulted for stating the obvious. You can be slapped for speaking truth to power. You can watch your phone shatter on the tarmac and be told to be grateful you still have your teeth.

A Pattern Of Impunity: When Will It End?

The military has a job to do. No reasonable Nigerian disputes that. Soldiers face dangers that civilians cannot imagine. But that sacred duty does not include the right to slap citizens who comment on traffic jams. That is not discipline. That is thuggery in uniform.

Akahi News had earlier reported on the growing tension between security personnel and civilians across the country. From checkpoints to roadblocks, from Abuja to Lagos, the story is often the same: a citizen says something, a soldier takes offense, and the citizen pays the price.

TheCable has not yet issued an official statement on the assault of its assistant business editor. But press freedom advocates are already demanding an investigation. The Nigerian Army has a responsibility to identify the soldier seen in that video and bring him to book.

Here is the philosophical reflection that lingers: When a soldier slaps a journalist for speaking about traffic, what message does that send to every other Nigerian? It says: keep your mouth shut. It says: your observations do not matter. It says: we can hurt you and no one will defend you. That message is not acceptable. That message must be rejected.

Olalekan Fakoyejo was doing what journalists do – observing, reacting, speaking. He was not inciting violence. He was not insulting the military. He was not breaking any law. He was simply noting that a soldier caused a traffic jam. For that, he was dragged off a tricycle, slapped, shoved, threatened with a cudgel, and his phone destroyed.

If that can happen to a journalist, it can happen to you. If that can happen in Ikeja, it can happen anywhere. The military is not above the law. The constitution protects the right of every citizen to free expression. That soldier needs to be identified, arrested, and prosecuted. Anything less is an endorsement of impunity.

Key Summary Box: Soldier Assaults TheCable Journalist In Ikeja

• The Victim: Olalekan Fakoyejo, assistant business editor of TheCable.

• The Incident: Saturday, May 2, while travelling from Ikeja to Ogba in a tricycle (Keke Napep).

• The Trigger: Fakoyejo remarked to other passengers that a soldier directing traffic was responsible for a gridlock near Pleasant Event Centre, off Ajao Road, Ikeja.

• The Assault: A dark-complexioned soldier overheard, ordered everyone off the tricycle, dragged the journalist, slapped him when he tried to explain to another soldier, shoved him repeatedly, and attempted to hit him with a cudgel.

• Property Damage: The journalist’s phone fell and its screen shattered during the shoving.

• Witnesses: Passersby filmed the incident and begged Fakoyejo to leave the scene to avoid further beating or death.

• Further Harassment: Two other soldiers accosted him as he walked away, threatening to whip him again.

• The Context: This assault happened days after a soldier shot and killed an NYSC member in Abuja.

• What Is Needed: Identification and prosecution of the soldier seen in the video. A public apology from the Nigerian Army. Recompense for the destroyed phone.

• The Bottom Line: No Nigerian should be slapped, shoved, and threatened with a weapon for commenting on traffic. The military must be held accountable. Press freedom includes the freedom to observe and speak without fear of assault.

— Akahi News condemns the assault on Olalekan Fakoyejo and calls on the Nigerian Army to investigate and prosecute the soldiers involved. We will continue to follow this story and report updates. For the latest on press freedom and security sector accountability, stay tuned to Akahi News.