A University of Ilorin lecturer, Chief Elijah Olorunsuwa, has alleged that police officers arrested him over a WhatsApp post concerning a road construction project in Kogi State. The UNILORIN lecturer WhatsApp arrest has attracted considerable public attention.
According to The PUNCH, Olorunsuwa made the allegation during an interview detailing his encounter with officers who took him from his residence to Lokoja. The case has been widely discussed as the UNILORIN lecturer WhatsApp arrest.
The political science lecturer said the incident began when officers arrived at his residence around 5 a.m. and informed him that he was under arrest.
He claimed they initially told him he would be taken to the police headquarters in Kwara State but later diverted towards Kogi.
“I was very worried because I did not know where they were taking me,” he said. In addition, the UNILORIN lecturer WhatsApp arrest has led to further debate about academic freedom and digital communication.
Lecturer alleges forced retraction
Olorunsuwa explained that the controversy involved a community WhatsApp post discussing the funding of the Kabba-Okehi-Oleluke road project.
He claimed to have received information suggesting World Bank involvement in the project.
However, Kogi State Governor’s Security Adviser, Jerry Omodara, challenged the publication, maintaining that the road was a state government project.
Olorunsuwa alleged that he was pressured to retract his statement before securing his release from police custody.
“I was afraid for my life. I did not want to spend another minute in the cell,” he said.
Responding separately, Omodara denied allegations that the lecturer was abducted or forced to apologise. Nonetheless, the questions raised by the UNILORIN lecturer WhatsApp arrest remain important to the university community.
The security adviser maintained that Olorunsuwa had ignored a police invitation before his arrest.
He also insisted that the petition concerned an allegedly misleading statement about the project’s funding.
Both parties presented conflicting accounts of the arrest and retraction.
The dispute has raised questions about the handling of complaints involving social media publications and public officials.
