In response to widespread reports alleging an unlawful raid on the Abuja office of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) has sought to clarify the events that took place on Monday. The secret police, in a statement released on Tuesday, firmly denied claims that its agents had stormed SERAP’s premises, insisting the officers were merely engaged in a routine investigation.
“The narrative circulating is inaccurate and misleading,” the DSS said in its statement, adding, “For the record, two unarmed operatives were lawfully sent to conduct a routine inquiry at the SERAP office in Abuja, which has regrettably been misinterpreted as harassment and intimidation.”
The agency described its visit as part of standard operational procedure, further distancing itself from the accusations of an unlawful raid. “Such official enquiries are traditional and do not constitute illegality or misconduct,” the statement read, while urging the public to dismiss the “false narrative.”
The clarification follows a call by SERAP for President Bola Tinubu to intervene, after what the organisation described as an “invasion” of its office by DSS officers. Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP’s Deputy Director, condemned the incident, accusing the DSS of “intimidation and harassment” of its staff, calling it “a brutal assault on the entire human rights community in the country.”
Oluwadare continued, “This government has an obligation to support and protect civil society groups and human rights defenders. We are seriously concerned about the growing restrictions on civic space.”
The organisation has urged President Tinubu to order a thorough investigation into the incident and ensure that those responsible for the alleged harassment are held accountable.
As the row intensifies, the DSS insists that it remains committed to professionalism, urging citizens to cooperate with security services to maintain national security.
