Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has raised the alarm over what he described as the rising wave of repression and intimidation under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
He made this known in a statement on Monday titled “A Nation Gripped in the Throes of Fear.”
Atiku said the Tinubu government was fast turning Nigeria into a police state where citizens, journalists, and activists are harassed for expressing dissent.
He condemned the use of the Cyberstalking Act to target critics, describing it as “a modern tool of tyranny reminiscent of colonial sedition laws,” and warned that “no government, no matter how powerful, is greater than the people.”
The former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party accused Tinubu’s government of weaponising state institutions to suppress opposition and of persistently disobeying court orders, saying such conduct undermines democracy and the rule of law ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He also lamented the growing silence of institutions meant to check executive excesses, noting that “parliament and oversight agencies now appear more eager to praise than to question power.”
“There is a disturbing yet growing pattern by which the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu continues to muzzle free speech and, in so doing, erode the integrity of the democratic ethos that defines our nation.
“It is a development that should trouble every Nigerian, for if this creeping culture of repression continues unchecked, it will ultimately turn the Federal Government into a bully and make subjects of free citizens.
“From journalists jailed for speaking truth to power to citizens arrested during the #EndBadGovernance protests, Nigerians continue to suffer persecution simply for daring to think, to speak, or to protest. If truth be told, this regime may have surpassed all its predecessors in the reckless use of state power to crush public opinion.
“Since the inception of this administration, Amnesty International has consistently faulted its human rights record. Other reputable bodies, such as the Nigeria Union of Journalists and Media Rights Agenda, have cried out against the jackboot oppression of journalists and citizens by state agents whose only mission seems to be to stifle dissent.
“Today, President Tinubu and his government behave as though they are sovereigns over the people. As they continue to suffocate dissent, they also attempt to subdue opposition parties and silence every voice of reason.
“Even institutions that should act as checks on executive excesses, legislatures, oversight agencies, and the judiciary, have become mere rubber stamps, their leaders tripping over themselves to sing the praises of a president few dare to question.
“As a democrat and stakeholder in the opposition, I am convinced that the 2027 general election will be a defining moment, a contest not merely between parties but between the Tinubu hegemony and the will of the Nigerian people.
“And history bears eternal witness to one truth: no despot, no matter how powerful, has ever triumphed over the collective voice of a determined people,” he stated.
This comes as activist Omoyele Sowore, lawyer Aloy Ejimakor, and others were arrested last week over the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest.
Sowore and others have been granted bail by an Abuja court but remain remanded in prison.