A Lagos school project reportedly received ₦147.1 million for new classrooms and a skills centre in 2023, but three years later, the journalist who questioned the project is in Kuje Correctional Centre while the public is still waiting for proof that the work was done.

Development Diaries reports that Daniel Ojukwu, a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), was remanded on 10 November, 2026, after pleading not guilty to 12 counts of cyberstalking and criminal defamation.

His bail hearing is scheduled for 01 December, while the N147.1 million school project he investigated in Lagos remains without publicly available verification that the work was completed.

In November 2023, FIJ reported that the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (OSSAP-SDGs), then headed by Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, had paid N147.1 million to Enseno Global Ventures Limited for new classrooms and a skills acquisition centre at a primary school in Lagos.

The publication questioned the company’s construction record and reported that its reporter found no evidence of the project at the site.

FIJ later published other reports on spending by the office, including a November 2023 report on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s recovery of N241 million from the office, and a December report concerning a N47.5 million contract that the publication said had been paid at a senator’s request.

Ojukwu’s experience has since moved from arrest to prosecution and, now, remand, while the questions raised by his reporting remain unanswered.

To date, no public record shows that the Lagos school site has undergone an independent inspection, that the contract and payment records have been published to establish whether the project was completed, or that the Attorney-General of the Federation has stated whether he intends to intervene in the prosecution.

Nigeria’s press freedom record adds to these concerns, with Reporters Without Borders ranking the country 112th out of 180 countries in its 2026 World Press Freedom Index, placing it in the difficult category.

The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development recorded 1,326 press freedom violations between 1986 and May 2026, including 28 journalists killed, while the Women’s Consortium of Nigeria also reported that state actors were involved in 81 of the 103 incidents recorded in 2024.

These cases call for action from institutions responsible for protecting press freedom, investigating public spending and upholding the rule of law. The Attorney-General of the Federation should first use the powers granted under Section 174 of the Nigerian constitution to take over and discontinue the prosecution of Ojukwu and the FIJ, founder Fisayo Soyombo, and publicly explain the decision.

The questions surrounding the Lagos school project also require an independent investigation. The Auditor-General, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) should inspect the site and publish their findings by 13 December, 2026.

Alongside this, OSSAP-SDGs should release the contract, payment and completion records for the N147.1 million award by the same date, allowing the public to establish what was approved, what was paid and what was delivered.

The police also have a responsibility to ensure that complaints about published reports are handled through lawful channels, with the Inspector-General of Police directing officers to refer such complaints to the appropriate civil courts rather than resorting to arrests.

In turn, the Police Service Commission and the National Human Rights Commission should investigate Ojukwu’s reported incommunicado detention in May 2024 and publish their findings by 12 January, 2027.

Longer-term reform is also necessary to prevent the continued use of criminal laws against journalists. So the presidency and the Federal Ministry of Justice should send an executive bill to amend Section 24 of the Cybercrimes Act and repeal criminal defamation provisions in federal law by 11 February, 2027.

The public deserves to know whether the classrooms were built, how the money was spent and why a journalist investigating the project is facing prosecution.