The Federal Government has moved to revive a long-running legal battle over unresolved killings of journalists, asking the Court of Appeal in Abuja for permission to contest a judgment mandating fresh investigations.
At the centre of the request is a ruling that directs authorities to reopen probes into the assassination of Dele Giwa and several other media practitioners whose deaths remain legally unsettled decades later.
However, the government’s application comes after missing the constitutionally allowed 90-day window for filing an appeal, forcing it to seek the appellate court’s discretion before proceeding.
In a February 2024 decision, the Federal High Court ordered security agencies to resume investigations and prosecutions related to Giwa’s death and similar cases, describing unresolved journalist killings as a threat to press freedom and public accountability.
Giwa, a founding editor of Newswatch magazine, was killed by a parcel bomb at his Lagos home in October 1986, a case that has since become a symbol of impunity in Nigeria’s media history.
The lawsuit that produced the ruling was initiated by Media Rights Agenda, which also sought justice for other slain journalists, including Bolade Fasisi, Godwin Agbroko, Omololu Falobi and Edo Sule-Ugbagwu, among others.
In court filings dated December 23, 2025, counsel to the Attorney-General of the Federation, A.B. Mohammed, told the appellate court that the government still intends to challenge the judgment despite the elapsed deadline.
The application noted that draft grounds of appeal had already been prepared.
Supporting the motion, a Justice Ministry official, Kelechi Ohaeri, said the appeal was necessary “to ensure that all legal issues arising from the judgment are properly examined,” urging the court to grant the request in the interest of justice.
As of now, the Court of Appeal has not scheduled a hearing date for the application, leaving the fate of the proposed appeal uncertain.