Pandemonium broke out at the National Assembly on Wednesday as security agents barred journalists from accessing the legislative complex.
According to the Sergeant-at-Arms and police officers on duty, they were acting on “orders from above” to prevent journalists without accredited identity cards from entering the White House complex.
Despite pleas from journalists, who explained that the National Assembly’s Information Department had yet to issue permanent ID cards, the security agents remained adamant.
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Efforts to negotiate entry for those with temporary IDs proved futile.
The situation escalated as security personnel resorted to verbal abuse before physically attacking some journalists.
The first victim was The Nations newspaper’s Nicolas Kalu, who was assaulted during the altercation.
Additionally, the officers seized the phone of Tolu Akinyemi, an accredited journalist with SuperScreen Television.
When contacted, the Office of the Clerk to the National Assembly denied issuing any such directive.
Details later…