UPDATE: Family of Slain Vanguard Jounalist Says Police IRT, SWAT’s Reports Confusing

Aggrieved members of the late journalist, Tordue Henry Salem on Monday expressed dissatisfaction over conflicting information presented by the Nigerian Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and Unit Special Weapon Tactical Team (SWAT) on the death of Tordue Salem.

The sobbing elder sister to Mr. Tordue Salem, Mrs. Elizabeth Kuraun-Elder Sister during a condolence visit initiated by members of the House of Representatives Press Corps led by its chairman, Ms. Grace Ike, demanded justice.

“You guys are journalists, his colleagues, look at his daughter, for this girl, please help us get justice for my brother. The real killers should come out because when they were investigating this thing, I got two conflicting reports. IRT was telling me something else, is it SWAT? they were telling me something else; two conflicted reports.

“People are calling me in my village, they don’t believe that story. People are calling from the US and the UK no one believes it. There were videos that were circulating that Tordue was packed in a bag. The body in the mortuary, down is burnt. I don’t eat because anytime they give me food I tell them that it’s like they have butchered my Brother and given me to eat. I don’t want to eat that food.

“I want justice, whoever killed my brother, you journalists have the power. This is one of you, it could happen to anybody. It’s his (Tordue’s) turn today, if we ignore it like we ignore things in Nigeria, tomorrow whoever did that to him, if that person is not brought to answer whatever he has done to him, the person will do it to another person because he or she was not caught. We want justice for the sake of this girl so that his spirit can go and rest.

“I am not accusing anyone, but I don’t believe anything that they showed us on that television. Directly, I don’t believe it and for the police spokesperson saying we have identified the corpse when we have not seen it, I don’t know why they made that. Justice for Tordue is all that we want,” she stressed.

In his remarks, Chairman, House of Representatives Press Corps, Ms Grace Ike who led the delegation on a condolence visit to Salem’s family, described him as a Friend and Family

She said: “He’s our brother and we are his sisters and brothers, and for us, it’s a painful one. And that is why we dedicated today, in fact, it’s three-day mourning we started since, on Friday, Monday and tomorrow which is Tuesday will be the third day. So we are here to commiserate with you and to let you know that you’re not alone. Tordue was indeed a friend and a brother and we know someday we will all meet.

“We are also looking forward to doing all we can as journalists and as his fellow brothers and sisters to ensure that relevant security agencies get justice for Tordue. For us we are one family, we are still pained. We are hopeful that someday Justice for Tordue will come and we will not rest on our oars until Justice for Tordue is done.”

In his testimony, the in-law to Mr. Tordue Salem, Dr. Jeffrey Kuraun who expressed concern over the mystery surrounding Mr. Tordue’s death, gave a vivid account of a ploy by the Police hierarchy to lure him to attend the press conference, without seeing the purported body of his late in-law.

Dr. Kuraun who was flanked by Tordue’s wife – Mrs. Deve Salem and her daughter – Avaana Salem, described Tordue as ‘harmless’, explained that Tordue was asked to move into his apartment after he was attacked by hoodlums at Trademore Estate, Lugbe about six months ago.

While frowning at the failure of the Police authorities and employer to contact the Family before running the publication about Tordue’s death, he said: “Because they have our contacts, it is better to just put up a call through to us and say you know what, I have bad news and we are going to publish it but we have bad news and that will prepare our minds. But that didn’t happen.

“So me too when I got here I called my family members and I told them Tordue I’ve been told by the police is gone! So I said it exactly like that, without trying to paint it. So if my wife is going to die because Tordue is dead so be it, they all fainted, we poured water on her and she started shouting that her brother was not dead.

“The next day I got there, a few minutes to the press conference and I appealed to them, then I asked them about my relevance in the press conference.  What am I going to say? Have I even seen the body? No, so what would I say I haven’t even confirmed that it’s Tordue? The commander quickly sent somebody to accompany us to the hospital.

“The unfortunate thing was that I was trying to identify the body while there was a briefing that the family has positively identified the body, positively and I’m still saying here that I’m sorry the body I saw I cannot say if it was Tordue’s.

“Yes! the frame looks like his; the legs are completely gone, entirely messed up. He’s a tall guy, I didn’t see that, so I was trying to look at the frame to see if it is him. So I just need answers. Luckily I came back and I called them to say what next?” Dr. Kuraun said.

While urging the Media Practitioners not to lose hope in Nigeria, Dr. Kuraun argued that “all the things that have happened good or bad is as a result of our own individual inputs let us be very objective and condemn as you always do what you think is not right, a lot of people died in mysterious circumstances in this country and the manner in which it was approached nothing has happened.

“What would you do? Nothing has happened, so don’t be in the category of people where someone will say let them talk after a while everything will die down. Don’t do that.

“You know what you call it, investigative journalism you might not have the resources to do it the way you want to do it, but in your little space sew what you can do to unravel certain things.

“As for Tordue, you all watched the press conference I think this is the first time I see every Nigerian saying no, tell this to the trash don’t tell us we don’t believe that. It’s true that is what everybody is saying. As a family, do we believe in the story? No, we don’t believe it. It could be true but we don’t,  Why? Do more to clarify certain things. So that maybe by the time the investigators get to us formally, because that has not happened as of today, formally we’ve not been informed.

“Maybe the formal information was the Press conference, I respect that so we have also listened we are Nigerians so we should take that as formal information concerning this matter. But I’m still looking forward to an opportunity for us to be sited to say this is how we went about it. I understand the investigation is ongoing. Even if you get those who are responsible they’ve not been charged and taken to any court then there’s a lot more that will take place. Maybe that is what the police are waiting to do before they could fully inform us. But normally that has not happened.

“If it true they are playing on intelligence that will be revealed noting that the police no matter what will investigate the case however you see it. Don’t go and quote me that I’m backing the police, I’m not. I’m actually very angry with the police but I will not use my emotions to truncate or mess up the investigation that is ongoing by going out there to criticize them and say all sorts of things that will dampen their spirit and make them not do anything for Tordue. There are one or two persons in the police force who may be willing to help.

“When I was told informally that we lost him, and the next is there is going to be a press conference, and please I shouldn’t mention to other family members until after the press conference, I respected that and I wanted to do it that way but by the time I left the IRT people were sending me information about Tordue’s and I said where is the Vanguard in a hurry, yes I criticized it, I’m not a journalist, I have no experience, you guys know how you do it,” he urged.