VeryDarkMan Responds To Police Invitation Over Kidnapping Claims

Social media activist Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, has rejected the Nigeria Police Force’s demand that he provide evidence to support his allegation that some security personnel were facilitating kidnapping and banditry in the country.

Otse, who responded to the police invitation on Thursday, said he was willing to appear before the authorities but would not hand over his evidence during questioning.

In a video shared on his Instagram page, the activist challenged the police to prosecute him if they believed his allegations amounted to an offence.

“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.

Earlier on Thursday, the Police Force had invited Otse to substantiate his claim that some officers operating checkpoints identify wealthy travellers and allegedly pass information about them to kidnappers, who subsequently target the victims.

The Force described the allegation as serious, unsubstantiated and capable of damaging public confidence in the police, while assuring that any evidence provided by the activist would be urgently reviewed and investigated.

But Otse said his legal representatives were prepared to defend him if the police chose to take the matter to court.

“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.

The activist doubled down on his allegation that security agencies are contributing to the persistence of insecurity, accusing the police, military, immigration and customs authorities of knowing more about the situation than they publicly admit.

“It is the police people that aid insecurity. It is the military men that benefit from insecurity. That’s why it can never stop,” Otse alleged.

He also questioned why kidnapping, banditry and terrorism remained widespread despite huge government spending 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 maintained that he would continue to speak publicly about issues of national concern, regardless of possible legal consequences.

He further accused Nigerians of frequently criticising the police and military over insecurity but defending the same institutions when allegations of wrongdoing are made against them.

The activist said his objective was to demand accountability from public institutions and insisted that he stood by his claims.

“I’m proud of myself that right in their faces I said what I had to say and to tell them that the insecurity going on in Nigeria, it is aided by them. I stand by my words,” he said.

Despite his criticism, Otse acknowledged the difficult working conditions faced by many police officers, arguing that improved welfare was necessary to strengthen the country’s security architecture.

“There is no welfare for the Nigerian police. If you want Nigeria’s security to be tightened, you have to take care of our policemen. Take care of them,” he said.

The latest confrontation followed Otse’s earlier allegations against the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 2 Command, Moshood Jimoh, whom he accused of corruption in connection with the investigation of a case involving businessman Ahmed Tajudeen Akanbi.

The police subsequently confirmed that Jimoh had been invited for questioning as part of an internal administrative review and also asked Otse to provide evidence supporting his claims.

The Force said the criminal matter connected to the allegations was already before a court following advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

Otse, however, criticised what he described as the police’s delayed response to his allegations against Jimoh, contrasting it with the speed with which the Force reacted to his recent comments about checkpoint-related kidnappings.

He claimed to have released materials relating to the earlier case, including allegations of torture of suspects, but said the police only responded after he published additional evidence.

He also repeated his controversial assertion that politicians use cattle as a vehicle for money laundering, while arguing that Fulani herders are being exploited as victims of political manipulation.

Otse asserted that he was ready to face the authorities in court and have his evidence presented through the judicial process.

“For the police, I’m very, very ready for you guys. 100 per cent. I’m ready to show you that you people aid insecurity. You people aid banditry and terrorism in this country,” he said.

“Let’s meet in court. The evidence will be tendered there.”