Africa Independent Television (AIT) has tendered an apology to the Department of State Services (DSS) over a report alleging that its operatives invaded the Lagos State House of Assembly on February 17.
The apology, issued during a live broadcast of its News Hour programme, comes after the DSS threatened legal action against Daar Communications PLC, owners of AIT, and the management of Channels Television on the “false, defamatory and malicious, report”.
The DSS also demanded a retraction and public apology from the media organisations.
In videos that made the rounds on social media on Monday, operatives of the DSS were seen in a physical struggle with the state’s lawmakers.
According to the DSS, the report alleged that its operatives attempted to prevent lawmakers, including Mojisola Meranda, the assembly speaker, from accessing the chamber for plenary.
Details later emerged that the DSS was officially invited to the assembly complex by the acting clerk to assist in maintaining order following intelligence that Mudashiru Obasa, the ousted speaker, planned to resume office on February 18 — a move the house believed posed a security risk.
“However, without any verification of the reason for the presence of our client’s officials at the Lagos state House of Assembly on the 17th of February, 2025, your organization maliciously and falsely broadcast, both on your news bulletin and print media, that our client had invaded/stormed the Lagos state house of assembly with a view to preventing the members and speaker from entering the chamber for plenary,” the letter through Ayodeji Adedipe, its legal representative, reads.
In its apology to DSS, AIT acknowledged that the information it broadcasted was incomplete and had unintentionally misrepresented the role of the DSS.
“AIT News wishes to apologise to the Department of State Services for the news item broadcast during our bulletin on Monday 17th February 2025, regarding the presence of DSS officers at the Lagos State House of Assembly,” the presenter said.
“Our intention was not to malign or embarrass the DSS, an institution we hold in the highest regard for its critical role in safeguarding our nation.
“Our reporting was based on eye-witness account obtained from sources available at the Lagos State House of Assembly. However, we recognise that the report may have been incomplete and unintentionally misrepresented the service and its presence at the State House of Assembly. We regret any embarrassment this may have caused.”
‘IT’S RIGHT TO APOLOGISE TO THE DSS
Meanwhile, Channels TV, on Friday, also offered an apology during its program, Politics Today, anchored by Seun Okinbaloye, where the former Assistant Director-General of the DSS, Muhammed Ngoshe, was a guest.
Okinbaloye stated that the situation had been misinterpreted with initial videos portraying a picture of lawmakers shocked by the DSS presence, suggesting an invasion by the DSS.
However, it was later revealed that the clerk of the House had formally requested the DSS’s presence for protection.
Okinbaloye said, “It came to light in some of the letters that we actually now saw that it was the clerk of the Lagos Assembly who actually wrote for DSS protection at the House of Assembly. But if you look at the video, it was made to appear as though the lawmakers were fighting to get inside and they were shocked that DSS was there.
“I think it’s right to apologise to the service to say the use of invasion might not be the right word to use because it was portrayed as though the DSS invaded, they were not invited, but it came to light that there was no decency in how they carried out their work.
He noted that subsequent revelations confirmed that the Lagos Assembly Clerk had indeed requested DSS protection.
“If you look at the video, it was made to appear as though the lawmakers were fighting to get inside and they were shocked that DSS was there,” Seun explained. “And I think it’s right to apologise to the service to say, I mean, the use of invasion might not be the right word to use.”
Further clarifying the legal authority of the DSS, Seun stated:
“You know, clearly you’re stating, and from what we even understand, that DSS has the power under the law to move into any place as they deem fit. Is that right?”
In response, Ngoshe expressed appreciation for the clarification and the acknowledgment of the DSS’s role, while also calling for official apologies to be communicated directly to the agency.
“I hope the apologies will be carried to the DSS officially. Because we need to stop some of those things,” he stated.
Recall that the DSS had threatened legal action against both media stations, accusing them of publishing false and malicious reports.
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