Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Kogi State Police Command has denied allegations that it harassed, intimidated or violated the rights of a University of Ilorin lecturer, Chief Elijah Olorunsuwa, following his arrest over a WhatsApp post concerning the Kabba-Olle-Iluke road project. The command said Olorunsuwa was arrested following a formal petition by the Kogi State Government over what it described as false and misleading information published about the state-sponsored road project. The police made this known in a statement issued on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, by the command's spokesperson, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, in response to the controversy surrounding the arrest and recent criticism of the Commissioner of Police, CP Nasiru Bello Kankarofi.
According to the statement, Olorunsuwa was arrested in Ilorin, Kwara State, on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, and taken to Lokoja for investigation. The Command said the lecturer made a statement during questioning and subsequently wrote and signed an apology to the Kogi State Government over his publication concerning the Kabba-Olle-Iluke road. The police claimed that in a letter titled "Retraction and Apology to Kogi State Government on My Publication on Kabba-Olle-Iluke Road," Olorunsuwa acknowledged that he had initially stated that the road project was being funded by the World Bank based on information available to him at the time. "Recent information has however confirmed that the said road construction is a sole project of the Kogi State Government," he was quoted as writing. The police also claimed that he apologised to the state government, saying the publication was not intended to embarrass the government. The Kogi State Government has maintained that the road project is solely financed by the state.
The police said Olorunsuwa was released on administrative bail on September 16 to one Ojo Johnson and directed to return the following morning, September 17, to assist with the investigation. The Command insisted that the lecturer was neither harassed nor intimidated and was not unlawfully detained. It also rejected descriptions of Commissioner Kankarofi in connection with the matter, describing him as a disciplined and professional officer with a record of service and respect for human rights. The Command said it would continue to work with other security agencies and relevant stakeholders to protect lives and property across Kogi State.
The police account contrasts sharply with the lecturer's own account of the arrest. Olorunsuwa told TheCable that around 5 a.m. on Wednesday, about eight police officers arrived at his residence in Ilorin to arrest him. He said he asked the officers if they had a warrant of arrest, but they did not provide any. He requested that the officers allow him to drive his own car and follow them to the nearest area command in Ilorin. According to Olorunsuwa, when they arrived at the area command, there were no police officers to attend to them, so he decided to join the officers in their van as they agreed to take him to the Kwara police command headquarters. However, the officers allegedly reneged on the agreement and drove him to Kogi State. When he arrived at the police station in Kogi, he was shown a petition reportedly written against him by Jerry Omodara, security adviser to the Kogi State Government.
In the petition dated September 11 and addressed to the Kogi police commissioner, Omodara alleged that Olorunsuwa has "consistently made false allegation and publications" against the Kogi government using social media. The security adviser said the lecturer's recent social media post against the Kogi government was on the award of the Kabba-Oke-Offin-Olle-Iluke road project. Omodara said the Kogi government published advertisements in newspapers for the award of the reconstruction of the road. The security adviser said after the newspaper publications, Olorunsuwa posted on social media that the road "project was not of the state government but World Bank sponsored and the state was to pay a counterpart fund". Omodara said Olorunsuwa's post is "false, malicious and with the intention to deceive unsuspecting public and discredit the government of the day". The petition concluded that "Mr. Elijah Olounsuwa is to be apprehended and to be made to tender all documents available to him from or by the World Bank to back his claim, otherwise he is to be charged for cybercrime and prosecuted".
Olorunsuwa told TheCable that someone posted a message on the Oke Offin community WhatsApp group that the state government was reconstructing the Kabba-Oke-Offin-Olle-Iluke road. The lecturer said he commented that the road project is sponsored by the World Bank. Olorunsuwa said that after his comment, Omodara replied to him and asked that the post should be deleted. He added that the state security adviser threatened that he should expect legal action if the WhatsApp post is not deleted. The lecturer said he and Omodara hail from Oke Offin in Kabba/Bunu LGA of Kogi State. "I told him that he should feel free to take me to court. I didn't pull down the post," the lecturer said. "However, some elderly men on the platform reached out to me and appealed for the need to maintain peace and I deleted the post."
Following his release, Olorunsuwa issued a statement describing the arrest as an illegal act of state-sponsored intimidation aimed at settling political scores. He alleged that heavily armed police officers invaded his private residence in Ilorin at approximately 5:30 a.m. and that the arrest was executed on the direct orders of Jerry Omodara, following a post he shared on WhatsApp regarding the rehabilitation of the Olle-Iluke Road. According to the chieftain, the petition and subsequent dawn raid were calculated attempts to silence his unrelenting support for the lawmaker representing Kogi West, Senator Sunday Karimi, and to instill fear among citizens advocating for accountability in governance. He described the move as an arbitrary display of authority by an overzealous appointee desperate to convince his superiors of political dominance.
Olorunsuwa expressed gratitude to members of the public and key political figures who raised their voices against the arrest, including Senator Sunday Karimi, Hon. Duro Meseko, Dr. Elebiyo Joseph, Prof. Omotola, and several traditional rulers. He also commended activists from the Okun nation for resisting intimidation and playing pivotal roles in securing his prompt release. Reaffirming his political stance despite the ordeal, Olorunsuwa declared that no amount of persecution would weaken his resolve to advocate for equity, justice, and democratic principles in Kogi State. He vowed to remain steadfast in speaking truth to power, maintaining his commitment to the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Sunday Karimi, and insisting that the movement for power rotation to Kogi West ahead of the 2027 governorship election is an unalterable agenda that will continue unabated.
The arrest has drawn condemnation from human rights activists and political figures. Human rights activist and African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, demanded the removal of the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, CP Nasiru Bello Kankarofi, over the arrest of Olorunsuwa. Sowore made the demand in a post on X on Monday, saying the Kogi Police Commissioner must be removed over what he described as repeated arrests and detention of citizens and political critics under Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo's administration. He added that the Nigeria Police Force should not be used to suppress free speech, silence dissent or settle political scores, stressing that Kogi residents have constitutional rights to criticise government and peacefully express dissent.
The case raises questions about the boundaries between legitimate criticism of government projects and criminal liability for cybercrime. The Kogi State Government maintains that the Kabba-Olle-Iluke road is solely state-funded, while Olorunsuwa initially claimed it was World Bank-sponsored with the state providing counterpart funding. The police have framed the arrest as a response to a formal petition, while the lecturer and his supporters view it as an attempt to intimidate a critic. Olorunsuwa has been released on administrative bail, but the investigation continues. The police have urged members of the public, media practitioners and social media users to verify information before publication, stressing that responsible information sharing was important in curbing misinformation.
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