Social media activist Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), has insisted that he has evidence to support his allegation that some security personnel aid kidnapping and banditry in Nigeria, but said he would not hand over the evidence to the police.
Otse, who reacted on Thursday to an invitation extended to him by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), said he was willing to honour the invitation but would prefer to present his evidence before a court.
“I’m not going to be giving the police my evidence. Why would I do that? I would be charged to court, and I would turn down the evidence in court,” he said in a video posted on his Instagram page.
The activist had alleged that some police officers manning checkpoints along major highways identify wealthy travellers and allegedly pass information about them to kidnappers to facilitate their abduction.
The allegation prompted the police to invite Otse to provide evidence, describing his claims as serious, unsubstantiated and capable of damaging the reputation of the institution.
The Force, however, said it was prepared to treat any evidence supplied by the activist with urgency and subject it to thorough investigation.
But Otse maintained that he would not submit the evidence at the police station, challenging the authorities to charge him to court if they believed his allegations amounted to an offence.
“So when I get to your office, you charge me to court. I can go to court on that same day. My lawyers are on ground,” he said.
His refusal to surrender the evidence to the police, however, came with a renewed insistence that he possesses information capable of backing his allegations against security personnel.
Otse alleged that elements within the police, military, immigration and customs services were aware of, or were contributing to, the persistence of insecurity in the country.
“It is the police people that aid insecurity. It is the military men that benefit from insecurity. That’s why it can never stop,” he alleged.
He also questioned why banditry, terrorism and kidnapping continue to thrive despite substantial government expenditure on national security.
“How much is your budget to battle insecurity? How much is your budget? Go and look at your budget and tell me why we still have bandits and terrorists kidnapping people,” he said.
Otse said he was prepared to face both the police and military in court over his allegations, insisting that the invitation would not deter him from speaking publicly about issues affecting the country.
“But like I said, why would I want to give you my evidence? I wouldn’t do that. Who would take you to court? You understand? When you’re ready, I’m ready. Face the love, don’t play,” he said.
The activist also criticised Nigerians who, according to him, had rallied behind security agencies following his allegations, despite frequently expressing frustration over the failure of the police and military to curb kidnapping, banditry and terrorism.
For now, the central issue remains whether the evidence Otse says he possesses will eventually be presented before a court or made available to investigators to enable the allegations to be independently established.
