Nigeria reporter 'secretly charged in court'

A detained Nigerian journalist was taken to court barefooted and charged with trespass and stealing police documents, his newspaper has reported.

Samuel Ogundipe pleaded not guilty when he was secretly arrainged in court, with no-one present, except the magistrate, police officers and prosecutors, Premium Times reported.

“At the court, I requested to speak with my lawyer and employer but they said I should wait until after the proceedings," it quoted Mr Ogundipe as saying.

The journalist briefed a colleague and the newspaper's lawyer when they were allowed to see him in a detention facility after his court appearance, the paper said.

M Ogundipe was arrested on Tuesday for publishing a briefing police chief Ibrahim Idris had sent to Acting President Yemi Osinbajo about the blockade at the parliamentary complex on 7 August, the Premium Times said.

Masked and heavily armed officers from the spy agency prevented lawmakers from entering parliament.

No official reason was given for the blockade, but the opposition described it as an attempt to intimidate its lawmakers.

More than 50 lawmakers had earlier defected from the ruling party to the opposition.

Mr Osinbajo condemned the blockade and sacked spy chief Lawa Daura.

The newspaper said it "remained a mystery" why Mr Osinbajo had failed to intervene in Mr Ogundipe's arrest.

“Premium Times has a constitutional duty to inform the Nigerian people and hold public officials to account. It will neither be intimidated nor cowed by the filthy antics of the police or the administration," it added.