The journalists who work with Informant247 had reported that the rector lied about the financial status of the polytechnic and also inaugurated shabby and uncompleted capital projects to celebrate the school’s 29th convocation.
The rector of Kwara State Polytechnic, Engr. Abdul Jimoh Muhammed has used his influence to get the police to arrest and detain two journalists - Salihu Ayatullahi and Adisa-Jaji Azeez - over an investigative report about how he mismanaged the school’s funds.
The journalists who work with Informant247 had reported that the rector lied about the financial status of the polytechnic and also inaugurated shabby and uncompleted capital projects to celebrate the school’s 29th convocation.
In the report, which was co-published by SaharaReporters, the journalists exposed the institution's significant revenue surplus, contradicting the rector's claim.
Kwara State Polytechnic appears to have a stronger financial position, as shown by an annual income surplus of more than N1 billion.
Also, amid claims of significant infrastructural development, such as the remodelling of an old library into a modern department and the construction of walkways, scrutiny revealed shoddy work and incomplete projects, raising questions about transparency and accountability in the management of funds and resources.
Speaking to SaharaReporters, the publisher of Informant247, Soliu Taofeeq said his colleagues, Salihu Ayatullahi and Adisa-Jaji Azeez, were invited on Tuesday by the Kwara State Police Command, Kidnapping and Anti-cultist Department and that they honoured the invitation.
He said when the journalists got to the police station, they were told that they were under arrest because of the report they did concerning the financial status of Kwara Polytechnic.
Mr Taofeeq further stated that the police had detained the two investigative journalists despite being served with a copy of the court papers for Case No. FHC/IL/C5/14/2024, which sought to defend their fundamental human rights against any unlawful arrest and detention by the police.
He said, “What the police are trying to do is to silence us. The story we did is in series and the rector knows that we are about to release another part to hold them accountable.
“So, his game is to use the police to detain the journalists, and you know they would not want to sleep in the cell. The rector thought by then, they would have offered to apologise and silence them.
“The police are doing all this despite letting them know that we are ready to go to court if the rector feels our report is not correct. We have our evidence. We should meet in court.”
Taofeeq said the rector met with the state commissioner of police and gave him the go-ahead to detain the journalists without any charges or trial.
“They are writing their statement but there is the possibility that they will detain them,” he told SaharaReporters on Tuesday.