The Chief Executive Officer of PRNigeria, Yushau A. Shuaib, has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police over what he described as a grave breach of digital privacy and cybercrime allegedly perpetrated by top officials of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS).
In a letter dated July 1, 2025, and directed to the IGP through the Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Shuaib alleged that NIPSS officials unlawfully accessed a confidential editorial email from PRNigeria and used it as part of a disciplinary query issued against him.
The email in question—titled “Understanding the ‘Blue’ in the Blue Economy: A PR Perspective” and dated April 25, 2025—was allegedly attached to a query Shuaib received from Barrister Nima Salman Mann, Acting Director of Studies at NIPSS. According to Shuaib, the email was never shared with or copied to any NIPSS official, raising serious concerns of unauthorized surveillance, data intrusion, or system hacking.
Shuaib, who had earlier been withdrawn under controversial circumstances from the prestigious Senior Executive Course 47 at NIPSS, said he was informed of the query by two directing staff members, Rear Admiral A.A. Mustapha and Professor Elias Wahab. However, it was the inclusion of the private email in the official query that prompted his petition to the police.
“This act signifies a disturbing violation of our digital space and suggests criminal interception of private communications,” the petition states. Shuaib warned that such breaches could endanger PRNigeria’s editorial operations, particularly the safety and confidentiality of sources involved in security-related reporting.
Citing Section 24 of the amended Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, the PRNigeria founder noted that the unauthorized interception of electronic communication constitutes a prosecutable offense. He provided the police with both the NIPSS-issued query and the original confidential email as evidence, urging forensic analysis to trace digital footprints or access logs.
Shuaib called for the invitation and interrogation of the implicated NIPSS officials—Barr. Nima Salman Mann, Rear Admiral Mustapha, and Prof. Wahab—as part of a full-scale and impartial investigation. He also requested the enforcement of accountability measures and safeguards to prevent such breaches in the future.
“This is not just a personal matter,” Shuaib noted. “It is about protecting press freedom, the sanctity of digital communication, and the right to privacy under Nigerian law.”
As at press time, neither NIPSS nor the Nigeria Police Force has issued an official response regarding the petition.