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Fisayo Soyombo: What Does a Country Do with all these Investigations?

By: Deji Yesufu

Fisayo Soyombo is a household name in Nigerian journalism. It however appears to me that we are all wasting this young man’s efforts; perhaps some other country that appreciates investigative journalism could poach him and use him to better the lot of their nation. Fisayo will be the first person to jettison such an idea – it remains a suggestion that he may still implement whenever the opportunity comes to him and if Nigeria continues to waste his efforts.

Soyombo came to my notice after his dare-devil investigation of the Nigerian police that nearly cost him his life. Soyombo had instigated his own arrest and was shut up in detention with the sole aim of reporting the fraud, extortion and bribery inherent in the Nigerian Police system. He went into detention with his camera on him – unfortunately this was what gave him away. Even with the camera in their hand, some of the policemen there could not figure out what he was doing – they were that plain stupid. Fisayo’s cover was blown in prison a few days into his detention but this had followed his being savagely beaten by an officer on duty. It does not matter the undercover work, the sheer thoughts of enduring such beating would have made many (including this writer) own up quickly as to what brought them there; but not Fisayo. Soyombo’s cover was blown open and everyone knew he had come to investigate happenings in the Nigerian Police. He would eventually be released but not after efforts had been made to neutralize him in detention for daring to do such a thing. Unfortunately nothing came out of that investigation.



Fisayo seem to have a liking for the Nigerian Police. I don’t blame him. The truth is that if one wants to document real life corruption, a trip to an average police station in this country will be more than helpful. One day, Soyombo sought to find out how much it would cost to smuggle a stolen vehicle across Nigerian. He drove a car without plate number or any registration paper from Abuja to Lagos; and also went from Lagos back to Abuja. For the two trips, it cost him N46,000. That investigation revealed so much: faces of corrupt policemen were taken; videos of police officers taking bribes; etc. Yet there appears to be no effort by the Nigerian police to curb extortion of motorist on our roads; nor has there been any move to reform the police system in general. This is the reason why sometimes I think that Fisayo is simply wasting his time with Nigeria.



There were some investigations he did into the Nigerian medical systems too. Fisayo invaded Nigeria’s mortuary and revealed the sorry state Nigerians find themselves when they die. That report was terrible and it broke my heart because everyone of us will die and the thought of what fellow Nigerians will do with our corpse is not what one wants to imagine. Someone may say that when living Nigerians are not being taken care of, why do we begin to bother ourselves with those who die. I cannot agree more but we must do something with these investigations. In another occasion, Fisayo admits himself at “Yaba Left” – a famous psychiatry center in Lagos, Nigeria. His findings were horrendous. I am not sure whether things have improved in that institution and I would not be surprised if things have simply continued as usual.



The latest investigation by Soyombo, published just yesterday, is concerning the corruption and rot in the rail system that the Nigerian government has managed to restore back to the country. Only recently, President Buhari and the minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, commissioned the new rail system between Abuja and Kaduna. Pictures flooded the internet of Buhari and Amaechi riding the train in first class coaches. The train stations themselves were built to taste and everyone felt that this was a new beginning in the transportation system in the country. In fact, we had all been looking forward to a similar commissioning of the Ibadan/Lagos rail system – before Fisayo unveiled his can of worms. The rail system that was only recently commissioned has been taken over by corruption. Because the express way between Kaduna and Abuja has become largely unsafe, most travelers prefer to use the train. In the process the volume of users of the train had gone. Then came in corruption also. Tickets that should sell for N1,500 end up being sold for N4,000. Even at that price tickets are still not available. Fisayo reports on how police and military men connive with workers at the station to hoard tickets and sell them at black market rates to people. Yet, we have a government in the country and nothing is being done. I would be heartbroken if this report simply goes the same route that the other investigations by this great Nigerian man go: government does nothing with it. I think there are reasons why Soyombo’s investigations are not hitting the mark and I would use the rest of this essay to discuss them.



Soyombo’s investigations reveal that the architects of Nigeria’s problem are Nigerians themselves. The next time you gather with your fellow Nigerians and they begin to blame government for the woes of this country, pull out a report by Soyombo and show them. Nigerians are their own enemies. In all the investigations that Soyombo carried out, you can see Nigerians taking advantage of the lull in the system. It is true things are not the way they are supposed to be but Nigerians need to know that nothing will get better until everyone of us begin to make the effort to fix things in our own little corner.

Soyombo, in a Facebook post, which was actually not an investigative effort, declared that he had removed himself from the national grid. Why? PHCN had continued to bring estimated bills to his house and every effort to get a meter has failed. It appears that some electricity workers would rather have Nigerians without pre-paid meters, so that they could take advantage of the system. This means that PHCN workers will still have the opportunity of collecting bribe monies from people in different localities who use power without paying. I know this for a fact because in recent weeks, government increased electricity tariff. In my neighborhood, the cost of electricity went as high as 110% . This has led to me shouting myself hoarse in the house, calling on my children to switch off light bulbs they are not using. My deep freezer is almost on total lockdown now and the pumping machine is used very sparingly. Yet, my neighbors use power as if it is about to go into extinction. While we have changed all our bulbs to energy savers, people use 100 watt bulbs freely in their shops and they leave these lighting points on all day. It is obvious that folks like these are not paying electricity bill; they are the ones that bribe PHCN officials when they come to cut-off their power lines. Obviously, all these persons and the PHCN people are not government; they are fellow Nigerian bent on milking the country dry. When government cannot recoup its investment in power, it increases tariff electricity. But this only causes for the circle to begin again: Nigerians would cut corners; they will bribe PHCN workers; and folks like us, good Nigerians, will be the ones paying for the electricity everyone is using. Nigerians are there number enemies.



Another reason why Fisayo’s report has failed to hit the mark is because of government ineptitude. Here again, what I have in mind is not Muhammadu Buhari or the ministers working under him; but the ineptitude of government agencies that should handle these reports and work on them. I am talking about civil servants. One thing we must understand as a people is that there is nowhere in the world where a President or even his ministers do everything as far governance is concerned. The best that they can do is to put policies in place that would allow for the smoot functioning of society. Government would still have to rely on agencies, mostly manned by civil servants, to do their jobs. No matter the investigation Soyombo carries out on the police, the inspector general of police will still have to take the initiative and set up machineries within the police to curb extortion and bribery in police stations. I do not know how many times road blocks have been abolished in the country; yet they still keep coming back. The truth of the matter is that road blocks have their place in a society like ours. I have seen the stolen vehicle of a friend recovered by the Nigerian police at a road block here in Ibadan. It is rare but these things happen. The road blocks are not the problem; the average Nigerian police need to understand that it is simply morally wrong to collect money from people on the road. If a policeman is gifted with cash, that is another thing entirely. But to cock your gun and aim at a motorist, forcing him to part with money is armed robbery. Buhari will not do this for us; neithe will the inspector general of police. Each police station in the country must have a head that would say to his officers that cases of extortion will not happen under his/her watch. When this happen, these evil report will dwindle. I am again going back to the whole issue of Nigerian owning their problem and seeking to fix it in their own little corner.



Then there is the matter of our moral compass as a people. I would never understand how Nigerians are so incredibly religious, yet we are known around the world for all kinds of ills and evil. When people despise religion because of the way religious people behave, one cannot blame them. Some of us who have investigated the kind of religion we practice in this country, particularly the Christian religion, have discovered that the base morality that Nigerians manifest in public starts actually among the clergy. There is the need for a total overhaul of religion in this clime and there is the need for religion to begin to manifest in the way our people behave.

Finally, one other reason Fisayo investigations may not be making a difference is that it has not brought sufficient embarrassment to Nigeria. And here I blame our leaders. Sometimes one want to believe the testimony of Prof. Wole Soyinka who says that it appears Nigeria has no leadership. Apparently until something brings this country a great deal of embarrassment, no one sees the need to attend to it. If Soyombo’s report had been published in an international newspapers, maybegovernment would have done something about it. Soyomobo’s investigations are sponsored by online news portals. The recent was done by BuisnessDay. If the Punch, Vanguard, The Nation, and other leading print Medias take this report and serialize them, things will change in the country. But probably because of competition between media houses, and forgetting the advantage of a united front, they ignore each other’s works and we all continue to suffer for it.

A few days ago, Soyombo joined the reporting team of the BBC in unveiling what really happened at a blast that occurred in Lagos last year and that led to the death of a number of people. The report indicted the Nigerian National Petroleum Cooperation (NNPC) but, as usual, the matter will die a natural death. No one will talk about it until the next explosion occurs and more people die.

Why does Fisayo Soyombo continue with his investigation despite the fact that government and Nigerian behave as if they do not exist? I don’t know. But I have the feeling that this good Nigerian possess an optimism that some of us have and that has made us to continue in the shores of this country despite opportunities to flee. “Everything good will come…”, my good friend and another journalist, Edmund Obilo, will always say on his radio station. The blessing of life is that death comes. There is an old guard that is gradually being eroded from the scene by the arm of death and they are being replaced by “a new breed without greed”, like Tunde Bakare will say. These men and women, a few of them, will take position in this country and they fix will this country. Soyombo’s reports are written and they will outlast all of us. A new generation will take them and use them to bring about a better Nigerian. While this generation may do nothing with Soyombo reports, another will. Optimism is what keeps Soyombo in business; it is what keeps a few of us in this country doing what we do.

Are you Fisayoare you advertising yourself) do you want to contest election

tobechi74:
Are you Fisayo Are you advertising yourself) do you want to contest election

Smh

tobechi74:
Are you Fisayoare you advertising yourself) do you want to contest election

The problem with Nigeria in 13 words.

We are a reflection of our nation. An average Nigerian is greedy, selfish and self centered.

We will need Fisayo's services in Lagos. The way the LASTMAN, VIO, TASK FORCE are discharging their duties in Lagos is worrisome. I understand the fact that some road users have lot of issues but these personnel are not professional.

Thesee guys don't even understand their roles and responsibilities.

Anyways! What do you expect when you give Agberos uniform.

This was the same journalist who against all odds, broke the news and insistently reported that Ajimobi RIP is late. He is one of the few investigative journalists who have attempted to break new grounds, taking investigative journalism as far it is concerned further than how the likes of Dele Giwa RIP, Chief Olusegun Osoba et cetera played the investigative journalism game.

For those who havent the data to spare for watching the above YouTube video clip, then the transcript is provided below. I trust interested parties have the strong liver to read thesis, a long epistle, a long essay as it will be to some or come across for some, especially those saddled with challenge of having a short attention span. The saving grace, is that once you start with the first paragraph, with less than ten sentences, you'll get hooked that you'll keep on reading, not wanting to stop until you see the end of reading every single bit of the "thesis, a long epistle, a long essay"

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ENTER THE DAREDEVIL JOURNALIST
- June 14 2020 THE CABLE/THISDAY

Our paths crossed in 2014. I was about to set up TheCable online newspaper. The biggest challenge was getting a good editor to take charge. Having practised journalism for over two decades, I wanted to take the back seat and concentrate my energies on other businesses. But unable to get a suitable candidate, I began to panic. I virtually gave up. Then the application of ‘Fisayo Soyombo arrived. He performed excellently well in the written test — and even better at the interview. Surprisingly, he gave up a bigger salary to accept our offer. According to him, he wanted to be part of TheCable dream. Putting dream above money? In Nigeria? I told myself: "this guy will go far in life".

Although his newsroom experience was limited, his raw talent, youthful energy, enterprising skills and commitment helped birth and nurture TheCable, which he edited from 2014-2017. And he loves adventure — such as undercover reporting. He once disguised as a clearing agent in order to expose the decay in the customs service. This earned him the 2016 Wole Soyinka Investigative Journalist of the Year award. To write another story, he drove a “stolen” car (i.e. without documents) from Abuja to Lagos and back to Abuja, passing through 86 checkpoints. He bribed police officers at every point, so he was never properly checked. If the car was truly stolen, he would have got away with it!

His biggest risk so far has to be his prison adventure. Early 2019, when he was about to quit as editor of Sahara Reporters, he told me he had a story idea and asked if TheCable could foot the bill. “I want to do an undercover investigation from inside the prison,” he said gleefully, as if announcing that he wanted to travel to Dubai for sight-seeing. “Someone will report me to the police that I broke a deal, I will be arrested, detained, charged to court and then remanded in prison. I want to uncover the corruption in our prisons and justice system generally. I have researched how much it will cost me to stay in a more comfortable part of the prison, have access to phones and eat noodles.”

I was scared. He could be killed! I still asked him to send in a proposal. At the management meeting, we were divided, but we finally decided to go ahead after all the arguments and counterarguments. Good enough, ‘Fisayo had also got the International Centre for Investigative Journalism (ICIR) to foot part of the bill. With fear and anxiety tugging at my heart, I approved the release of funds for the assignment. My wife was particularly agitated. She kept asking me if it was worth the trouble. I told her she needed to feel ‘Fisayo’s enthusiasm. It was impossible to discourage him. He won’t take no for an answer. He even prepared for the adventure by doing dreadlocks — to look the part.


Ahead of his police custody at the Pedro station in July 2019, he called to say good bye. It felt like a journey of no return. “Safe trip,” I joked, and we both laughed it off. He adopted a pseudonym — Olajumoke Ojo. Everything started well. The police locked him up. He recorded the atrocities at the station with his hidden camera. In court, some prison officials approached him and said if he wished, the judge would remand him within the premises — for a fee. They didn’t know Ikoyi prison was his goal. He opted for prison. They told him he could get a cell for N30,000, N100,000 or N150,000, depending on his choice. The VIP cell, they told him, was N1.5million. It was all a matter of cash!

At Ikoyi prison, things began to take a dangerous turn. ‘Fisayo’s brother called to inform me that his cover had been blown! Call it the work of the devil: his hidden camera was discovered as he was being processed for incarceration. The warders seized it, watched the videos, handcuffed him behind the back, and began to torture him. They scraped his locks and beat him silly on every joint in his body. In our risk analysis, we never saw this coming. We were more worried about beating from fellow inmates. My wife overheard my phone conversation with ‘Fisayo’s brother and burst into tears. “I warned you! I hope they won’t kill him!” she said, amid sobs. I managed to calm her down.

To compound matters, ‘Fisayo’s journalist friend and co-conspirator went to visit him in prison as pre-planned. Not knowing that the burble had burst, she walked straight into trouble. She was arrested and handed over to the police. The lady who came with her ran away and called me. Actually, ‘Fisayo was not supposed to go to prison with the camera. The original plan was that his journalist friend would pretend she came on a visit and then slip the gadgets across to him. But on sensing at the court premises that the warders would allow you do anything for a fee, ‘Fisayo decided to keep his gadgets on him. That was how the devil got into the detail.

I was in the UK. I had to do something — and very quickly — to save ‘Fisayo from a certain trouble with the Nigerian state. He could now be officially imprisoned. There were no ministers in place, so I was blank on who to enlist for the rescue operation. I decided to reach out to a former minister. He started complaining that TheCable had a “sinister motive”. He said we could have applied officially to inspect the prisons. After all, NGOs often visit the prisons along with officials of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), he said. I knew I was dealing with an establishment person but I didn’t expect this attitude. In the end, he did not help. And ‘Fisayo was still being tortured.

After I had agonised for hours — amid frantic phone calls from ‘Fisayo’s brother — one name finally came to mind. Mallam Abba Kyari, the late chief of staff to the president. He was once a journalist and an editor. He once wore our shoes. He would understand what we were trying to do. I sent him a WhatsApp message, asking if I could call him over an urgent matter. Immediately he read my message, he called. I needed to be tactical in my approach. I didn’t know how he too would react to undercover reporting. The former minister just said it was sinister. I knew Kyari to be liberal and progressive, but he was a government official and he too might take offence at our audacity.

“Mallam,” I half-stammered, “we are trying to help President Buhari fight corruption in government agencies, so we decided to send an undercover reporter to Ikoyi prison. Unfortunately, his cover was blown and they have been torturing him. They also arrested the lady who came to visit him.” He sighed. I smelt frustration. Then he lamented: “This is what journalists do in advanced societies to expose the rot in the system and government will act to put things right. But you know how we are in Nigeria.” He promised to reach out to the relevant authorities. True to his promise, I got word that the torture had stopped. The lady was also released by the police.

But Kyari’s help was just the end of the beginning. With the police, prison and court now aware of ‘Fisayo’s mission, they decided to make life more miserable for him. The court frustrated efforts to grant him bail by erecting fresh barriers. I had to call a top Lagos state government official for help. The court budged, but gave his release warrant to prison officials instead of his lawyer. The prison also secretly released him to the police, who took him back to Pedro. Goodness me, he could have been killed on the way and his body dumped in the lagoon! Prison would claim he had been released; officially, police no longer had anything to do with him. We dodged a bullet there.

The saving grace was that his brother was monitoring proceedings closely. He had been waiting for ‘Fisayo to come out of prison. After waiting for hours without seeing any movement, he became restless. He inquired from the warders and they said ‘Fisayo had been released! To whom? They said he should stop asking them JAMB questions. He almost went amok. Something told him to go to Pedro. On getting there, he decided to test the waters by sending his cousin to find out if ‘Fisayo was with them. When the guy did not return, we concluded he too had been detained. They obviously wanted to lure the brother into the station and arrest him too. He, after all, was the “complainant”!

We were unsure what the police wanted: a pound of flesh or a bucket of blood? We sent Taiwo George, editor of TheCable, to Pedro for fact-finding. He found ‘Fisayo behind bars. ‘Fisayo desperately asked him to inform me. The police officers tried to stop Taiwo but he quickly called me, saying on top of his voice: “I’ve seen ‘Fisayo! He is at the Pedro police station!” And that was it! We immediately reached out to Mr Zubairu Mu’azu, Lagos police commissioner at the time, and ‘Fisayo was freed that night. He had spent five days in police cell and eight in prison custody to get a story! On his way home, he told me excitedly on the phone: “Oga, we have a good story.” Cheeky rascal!

In October 2019, TheCable published his three-part series on his prison experience — to wide acclaim. It won him nomination for the International Journalist of the Year award, organised by the One World Media (OWM). The other two finalists are from the UK: Alex Crawford of Sky News and John Sudworth of BBC News. On Thursday, June 18, the winner will be announced. In truth, ‘Fisayo is already winner — trophy or no trophy. As Proverbs 22:29 says, “Show me someone who does a good job, and I will show you someone who is better than most and worthy of the company of kings.” That is the story of the daredevil journalist named Olufisayo Babatunde Soyombo. Excellence

And he won the Kurt Schork Award again this December for that story.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Fhe9lMm6A

micronut:
And he won the Kurt Schork Award again this December for that story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Fhe9lMm6A

Soyombo is a genius