This is to alert the human rights community, security agencies, the media, civil society organizations and the general public of the sudden disappearance of a dreaded investigative online journalist, public affairs commentator and activist Mr Fejiro Oliver who until recently was the Editor of Secrets Reporters and an investigative reporter with online news medium, Elombah.com. He was recently hired by the emerging online news medium Daily Voice NG as a Managing Editor.

Mr Fejiro was last heard of on Friday 19th September, 2014 while he was in Abuja to honour an appointment at the instance of the Secretary to the Niger State Government, Alhaji Saidu Idris Ndako. Mr Fejiro had carried out extensive investigation into the activities of the Niger State Government under the Governor Babangida Aliyu dispensation. After his investigation, he formally sought the response of the Niger State Government by contacting the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Saidu Idris Ndako Kpaki and the Chief Press Secretary to the Niger State Governor, Mr Israel A. Ebije. Instead of responding to the issues pertaining to the allege corrupt practices of governor Babangida Aliyu, the CPS, Mr Ebije in an electronic mail he sent to Fejiro Oliver threatened and warned him to desist from going public with the report (the outcome of his investigations).

In an editorial by Daily Voice NG few days ago, the security agencies and the general public were alerted of the threat to the life of Mr Fejiro Oliver by the Niger State Government through the Chief Press Secretary to the Niger State Governor. Sequel to this state of affairs, the SSG of Niger State had scheduled an appointment with Mr Fejiro in Abuja. As at the last time contacts were made with him, he was in Abuja for the sole purpose of meeting with the SSG.

Subsequently calls to all his known GSM lines last night proved abortive. His lines were either not reachable, switched off or busy. Up to this time, efforts to get in contact with Mr Oliver has not yielded fruitful results. We have reasons to believe that his incommunicado state or sudden disappearance has everything to do with his scheduled meeting with the Secretary to the Niger State Government, Alhaji Saidu Idris Ndako Kpaki. We are therefore assuming based on the above facts that the SSG is in the know about Mr Fejiro’s where about.

Our apprehension has been further worsened by the strange fact that Mr Fejiro Oliver has not posted any update(s) on his ever active Facebook Timeline and Twitter handle today. We have not been able to establish contacts with his family, especially his lovely wife. We are therefore constrained to issue this interim public statement while also taking further steps on this matter. Let it be known that Mr Fejiro Oliver is not alone. Any attack on his person or life will be treated as an attack on his constituency; the human rights community and the media.

•Inibehe Effiong writes from Lagos for and on behalf of Friends of Fejiro Oliver.

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