Prominent Nigerian film scholar and cultural activist Dr. Pedro Agbonifo Obaseki has announced his decision to pursue legal action following a violent public abduction, assault, stripping, and unlawful detention he suffered in Benin City on Sunday, December 28, 2025.

In a strongly worded press statement released today, Dr. Obaseki described the incident as a “brutal public abduction” in which armed individuals forcibly took him, violently assaulted him, stripped him naked, threatened his life, and paraded him through major roads in broad daylight while recording and livestreaming the ordeal to deliberately humiliate him and instil fear in the public.

He was subsequently detained for several hours despite sustaining injuries, with no formal allegation or lawful charge disclosed. Dr. Obaseki stated that the perpetrators claimed to be acting on the instructions of the Oba of Benin or the Oba’s Palace.

However, he noted that the Benin Traditional Council has categorically denied any involvement, authorisation, or prior knowledge of the acts in a widely publicised formal letter, a position he has accepted and welcomed as part of the official record.

After extensive consultations with his family, clan, senior legal advisers, and respected elders, Dr. Obaseki said he has chosen to seek justice through lawful and constitutional means—not out of malice or political motives, but to ensure accountability, deterrence, and the protection of human dignity.

He emphasised that remaining silent in the face of such grave violations would amount to complicity and expose other citizens to similar abuses.

Dr. Obaseki has engaged leading human rights lawyer Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, as lead counsel to pursue appropriate civil and criminal proceedings against the individual perpetrators and any persons found to have aided, facilitated, or enabled the offences through due process.

In light of the severity of the incident and its broader public interest implications, he has also formally notified and is engaging international human rights bodies and partners to ensure independent oversight, transparency, and monitoring of the investigative and judicial processes.

“This action is taken not only to restore the dignity of an innocent citizen and protect his family, but also to deter future occurrences and to affirm that no individual or group may abduct, brutalise, or publicly dehumanise another outside the law,” Dr. Obaseki stated.

Out of respect for ongoing investigations and judicial proceedings, he said no further factual or evidentiary commentary would be made at this time.

A devastating road accident on the busy Jimgbe–Ajaokuta–Lokoja highway claimed the life of a middle-aged mechanic on Sunday afternoon, while two other individuals sustained serious injuries.

The crash occurred around 1:30 p.m when a truck loaded with stones suffered a sudden mechanical failure and veered off course, slamming into another truck parked by the roadside.

The deceased, identified simply as Ayuba, was a mechanic actively repairing the parked truck at the time of the impact. Eyewitnesses described how the moving truck rammed directly into the stationary vehicle, trapping victims in the wreckage.

FRSC officers, assisted by good Samaritan motorists, worked frantically to extricate those trapped and provide immediate assistance at the scene.

The two injured victims were promptly evacuated to a nearby hospital for urgent medical treatment.

Traffic along the critical route was temporarily disrupted but has since returned to normal following the removal of the wreckage.

The incident serves as yet another stark reminder of the persistent road safety challenges on Nigerian highways, including mechanical failures, improper parking, and the risks faced by roadside workers.

Authorities continue to urge drivers to ensure regular vehicle maintenance and adherence to safety protocols to prevent such tragedies.

Investigations into the exact cause of the mechanical fault are ongoing.

Photo: Cross River militants surrender arms | Photo: @HQNigerianArmy on X

80 militants voluntarily emerged from the creeks in Akpabuyo LGA of Cross River State and surrendered their arms to the Nigerian Army under the state government’s amnesty programme.

This was disclosed on Friday by Yemi Sokoya, assistant director, army public relations, Headquarters 13 Brigade.

Sokoya said that the surrender took place at Atimbo rear area, Operation Okwok, adding that the militants sprung from two separate camps.

He said that the first camp, led by ThankGod Ebikontei, also known as Ayibanuagha, presented 39 fighters, while the second camp, headed by John Isaac, also known as Akpokolo, surrendered 41 fighters.

The second group is popularly known as the Akpokolo Marine Forces or Border Boys, according to the army.

Sokoya said the militants also surrendered a cache of arms, ammunition, and other items during the exercise.

“These included three AK-47 rifles, two pump action guns, one Mark 4 rifle, one G3 rifle, twelve single-barrel guns, ten AK-47 magazines, three speed boats, four boat house power engines, one C4 charge explosive, nineteen rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition, and eighty-four DENGUN cartridges, as well as other assorted military kits, tools, locally fabricated weapons, and accessories,” he said.

Sokoya said that the militants were handed to the Rapid Response team of the Cross River State government after the exercise, and are currently undergoing profiling by the Department of State Services (DSS) at Muka Sam Hotel, Ikot Ansa, Calabar.