A DISPUTE over N100 in change from a charcoal sale escalated into a police case, leaving 23-year-old journalist Faridat Isiak facing a four-year prison sentence after she criticised the handling of her mother’s arrest on Facebook.
She was also given the option of paying a N1.75 million fine by the court.
The journalist, who reports for Nagarta Radio and lives in Mararaban, Jos, Kaduna State, recounted her experience in an exclusive interview with The ICIR on Thursday. She said she witnessed the confrontation on Sunday, October 18, after her neighbour’s child returned with N100 instead of the N200 change her mother expected.
“My mum sells charcoal. They came because they wanted to buy charcoal, and she didn’t have change. So, she asked the girl to go with the money and bring N200 back for her when they changed the money. After some minutes, the girl brought back N100. So, my mom was like, ‘Why N100?’ She said her money was N200.”
According to Faridat, the neighbour insisted that her mother was owed N100. However, her mother explained that she had given the N100 to the neighbour’s sister about two months earlier and asked that she be contacted to clarify the matter.
The neighbour allegedly refused to accept her explanation, and the disagreement escalated into an exchange of insults. She explained that the neighbour later met her mother at her husband’s hospital and allegedly continued to abuse her.
The woman insulted her mother again on Tuesday, October 20, when her mother returned to the hospital to visit a sick child, she further stated.
“On Tuesday, I went to work. I got a call from my dad. He asked if I knew that my mum had been arrested. I said, arrested for what? My dad said the woman and her elder sister came in with sticks and they wanted to beat her,” she recalled.
Isiak said the neighbour called in the police to arrest her mother and detain her at the Mararaban Jos police station, where she was later told that the dispute should be resolved at home.
“My mum said immediately the woman’s husband came, and they were asking my mum to get bailed out; he paid the sum of N35,000 and bailed my mum,” she added.
She said her mother explained that she was not allowed to tell her side of the story despite the neighbour threatening her in the presence of the police.
However, the journalist said it hurt her that her mother was not treated fairly and decided to share the experience in a Facebook post.
“My dad called me and said, ‘You were insulting the DPO of Police.’ I said no. I explained that the post was intended to express my disappointment over how the dispute had been handled, and it was aimed at our neighbour’s husband, not the DPO.”
Isiak alleged that the neighbour’s husband took a screenshot of the post and sent it to the DPO, Usman Adamu, claiming that she had insulted the police officer.
“The police then came back that day and rearrested my mum since they couldn’t find me. They said if I heard that my mum was detained, I would come. My dad went to bail my mum, but the DPO said they should detain my dad too,” Isiak said.
She said the decision prompted her to report herself at the police station around 10 pm on Tuesday, adding that she was asked to apologise to the DPO and explain why she published the post.
“I apologised to him that the post was not intended for him. I did not call him names. Then the next question was, ‘Who sent you? Who asked you to make a post like that? I am very sure it is not your doing. Someone at the top was asking you to do this.’ I told the officer that nobody sent me.”
The journalist alleged that the police forced her to delete the Facebook post before her parents could be released.
The ICIR contacted the Kaduna State Police Public Relations Officer, Mansur Hassan, via phone calls and text messages to verify the details. However, the messages had not been answered, and the calls had not been returned as of the time of filing this report.
Four years in prison or N1.75 million
Isiak said she spent the night at the police station before she was taken to a Sharia Court in Kawo on Wednesday, October 21. She alleged that the proceedings moved swiftly and that she was not represented by a lawyer when she first appeared before the court.
“It was around 4 pm that I was taken to Sharia court in Kawo. I did not have a lawyer. When they asked me if I wrote the post, I said yes. The prosecutor said that I did it intentionally. He then asked if I went to school. I said yes. I told him that I am a graduate. He spent like minutes writing. Then, the next thing he was like, “This is a sentence,” she recalled.
According to her, the judge remarked that her education meant she should have understood the implications of publishing material capable of defaming someone, noting that he sentenced her to four years’ imprisonment or a fine of N1.75 million.
She also alleged that her sister, a lawyer, attempted to inform the prosecutor that the family had legal representatives, but the information was not conveyed to the judge before the judgment was delivered.
The judgment raised questions about the circumstances of the proceedings, particularly whether Isiak was allowed to get counsel.
Amnesty International immediately condemned the arrest, detention and sentencing of Isiak, describing the proceedings as vindictive and a travesty of justice.
In a statement on Wednesday, the human rights organisation alleged that authorities in Kaduna State targeted Isiak for criticising police conduct following the dispute between her mother and a neighbour.
Describing the proceedings as a sham trial, Amnesty International said the sentence disregarded the alleged misconduct that preceded the journalist’s arrest.
The organisation called on the Kaduna State Police Command and Nigerian judicial authorities to release Isiak, drop the charges against her and cancel the fine imposed by the court.
It also urged the Nigeria Police Force to launch a full and independent investigation into the conduct of the officers involved in the alleged detention of Isiak and her parents.
The organisation further called on Nigerian authorities to stop using defamation charges and the courts to harass journalists and restrict press freedom.
The ICIR reports that Section 36 of Nigeria’s Constitution guarantees fair hearing and provides that a person charged with a criminal offence is entitled to defend themselves in person or through legal practitioners of their choice.
Lawyers intervene as initial judgment is revoked
The case took another turn after lawyers intervened following the initial judgment, as the lawyers returned with her to the judge, who asked whether she understood the charge and whether she pleaded guilty or not guilty.
“The lawyers went to meet him, and they talked things through. So, the judge asked me whether I understood what I was being charged of. I said yes. Did I plead guilty or not guilty? I said I am not guilty. The judge then said he revoked his judgment that I should bring the guarantor who will stand for me,” she said.
She said she would provide the guarantor who would stand for her, with a further court appearance scheduled for November 3.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.