The Department of State Services (DSS) has denied laying siege on the premises of online news platform, Premium Times and its Editor-in-chief.
It also denied hacking the phone of one of Journalists working with the organisation, Samuel Ogundipe.
There been reports in some section of the media on Sunday of the secret police laying siege on the premises of the online medium in Abuja and the residence of its Editor-in-chief, Muskilu Mojeed who was said to be out of the country.
According to SaharaReporters, the DSS operatives could however, not gain entry into Mojeed’s house as his wife, Haulat refused to let them in without an instruction from her husband to that effect.
The report said; “Two men wearing mufti in fact went to Mojeed’s house on Sunday morning and told Haulat, his wife, that they had a message for her husband.
“They tried to pressure her to open the gate to the house to receive their message for her husband but the woman insisted on having the ‘message’ passed through the small opening on the gate, according to ICIR.
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“After trying effortlessly to have the woman open the gate, the men turned and left, driving off in a tinted black vehicle.”
According to reports, also, Ogundipe, who is the primary target of the DSS for exposing a memo written by National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno warning Service Chiefs not to take instructions on security matters from the President’s chief of staff, Abba Kyari, has gone into hiding as he felt his life was threatened.
However, in a statement on Sunday, signed by its spokesman, Peter Afunanya, PhD, the DSS said: “the report that the DSS is laying siege on premium times and has hacked the phones of one of its staff is false in its entirety.
“It is unfounded and just a needless sensationalism.
There is no such operation at the moment by the Service targeted at the Premium Times, its editor or staff.
“If there is any need for the DSS to discharge its duty, it sure has to do that with every sense of decency and in accordance with laid down procedures.
“Now the Service is not anywhere near the news agency. Therefore, the report should be disregarded.”
