Professor Okey Ndibe, the acclaimed Nigerian-American novelist and public intellectual, was held for several hours by DSS operatives at Murtala Mohammed International Airport on Monday in what critics say is the fourth such detention since 2011 — a pattern that spans four different Nigerian administrations.
By IDEA Television News Desk. 4 min read
Nigeria’s Department of State Services once again detained renowned novelist Professor Okey Ndibe on Monday morning upon his arrival from the United States at Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos — the latest in a decades-long pattern of harassment that civil society groups say exposes the Nigerian state’s deep hostility toward critical voices.
Ndibe confirmed the detention himself in a text message forwarded to journalists. He had been held for more than an hour waiting for clearance from a superior authority, writing that the operatives were “waiting for clearance from some ọga before they let me go.” According to accounts shared by human rights activist Omoyele Sowore, DSS operatives described Ndibe’s arrival in Nigeria as “suspicious” and demanded he disclose where he intended to go and who he planned to visit.
“I told the SSS that it’s a shame a country that rolls out the red carpet for criminals would harass a writer who wages war on corruption and the corrupt.”
— Prof. Okey Ndibe, following his 2017 detention
When it became apparent that the detention might trigger public outrage, the DSS changed tack — claiming that the officer assigned to Ndibe’s “case file” had travelled out of the country and they were trying to reach her. He was subsequently released. The SSS has yet to issue an official statement.
Why he is on a watchlist
Ndibe, who has lived in the United States since 1998, has taught at institutions including Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, and Brown University. His name was first placed on a security watchlist by the administration of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua around 2010 — reportedly in retaliation for his columns criticising a flawed election and publishing leaks about the president’s failing health. Despite multiple changes of government, and repeated assurances from officials that the matter would be resolved, his name has never been removed. His close friend and former Anambra information commissioner C. Don Adinuba noted that Ndibe had not even been writing for the Nigerian media over the last two years, having concentrated on book writing and lecturing.
The incident has drawn immediate comparisons to the broader crackdown on civic freedoms under the Tinubu administration. Coming on the same day that Nigerian federal workers issued strike ultimatums, doctors shut hospitals in protest, and teachers remained out of classrooms, Monday’s detention of one of Nigeria’s most celebrated literary voices has intensified scrutiny of the state of civil liberties in Nigeria.
