The management of The Guardian Newspapers Limited has apologised to the Department of State Services (DSS) over a story the newspaper published portraying the secret police as meddling in the affairs of the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Blueprint report that in the story titled: “Lagos Assembly Crisis Worsens, Reveals Deeper Crack in State Power Dynamics,” the newspaper claimed that several DSS operatives invaded the Lagos Assembly.
However, in response to a letter by Lead Counsel to the DSS, Adedipe and Adedipe, demanding retraction and apology, the media house said it published the report without realising that it was the Assembly management that invited DSS officers to secure the legislative facility, and, therefore, was without malice to the secret police.
“Upon realisation that the publication misrepresented albeit inadvertently, the motive behind the presence of the security operatives at the State Assembly on February 17, 2025, Guardian released a sequel on Monday February 24, 2025 tagged: Lagos State Assembly Crisis: No Malice Against DSS wherein it apologised and fully retracted its earlier story,”
The Guardian stated in the response signed by its Legal Adviser, Eki Durojaiye, Esq.
He further stated that the nix-up in the publication was an innocuous slip devoid of any malice against the DSS, nor was it intended to mislead or misinform the public.
“Accordingly, we convey our sincere and unreserved apologies to your client (DSS)and regret any inconvenience it might have suffered as a result of the publication,” the letter concluded.