As we approach the 2027 general election, there is increasing genuine concern over the stifling of the civic space, which is making it difficult for citizens, particularly those who are not aligned with the ruling parties, to share their political views and engage in electioneering. The opposition has also had to bear the brunt of brutal repression and persecution, which has made it virtually impossible for them to run campaigns and engage the electorate in many states of the Federation. At least three governors, in brazen violation of the constitution, have warned the presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, not to visit their states for political campaigns.
These undemocratic and autocratic actions are not subtle or implicit; they are brazen and explicit and, with the help of weak and compromised institutions, particularly the security agencies, are aimed at silencing and instilling fear in citizens and opposition who are determined to oust the current government at the polls next year. No action or event has encapsulated or underscored the extent of the intimidation and suppression of opposition voices in the country like the recent arrest of five men in Borno State for wearing an #TinubuMustGo shirt.
They were apprehended on September 25 by the Borno State police command for wearing the shirt. As expected, their arrest sparked condemnation and outrage among Nigerians. The Borno State Police Command claimed their arrest has no political undertone. He stated that the suspects were found in possession of 15 wraps of suspected Indian hemp, 100 tablets of suspected D5, a shisha pot, scissors, alongside two of the disputed T-shirts.
Nigerians who have become accustomed to the impunity and shenanigans of the police, which involve manufacturing and fabricating crimes and incriminating evidence to nail any innocent person they want to prosecute or jail, know that the claim is a classic case of giving a dog a bad name to hang it. Critics assert that the police are targeting peaceful protesters for their political views.
The command, however, insisted it remains strictly non-partisan and maintained that the case was forwarded to the judiciary to ensure due process was followed.
The Borno State governor has also been caught in the Web of controversy that trailed the arrest of #TinubuMustGo campaigners, with the public accusing him of ordering the arrest of the men. The statement, however, vehemently denied allegations by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) linking the governor to the arrest and prosecution of the campaigners.
In a statement released by the governor’s special adviser on media, Dauda Iliya, the administration dismissed the ADC’s claims as “impulsive, poorly thought out, and a product of political desperation.”
The government clarified that Governor Zulum never mentioned the #TinubuMustGo group, the ADC, or any specific opposition faction during his media chat, but rather focused his remarks entirely on maintaining security, peace, and public order.
Reprieve for campaigners
On Wednesday, the Magistrate’s Court in Maiduguri, Borno State, granted bail to five campaigners after 12 days in detention.
The Barrister Alkali Askira, chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Garki branch, confirmed the release of the defendants on bail.
While the campaigners may have regained their freedom, this does not necessarily address the fundamental issue that led to their arrest in the first place. It must be said here, and now, that wearing apparel with an inscription calling for the voting out of an unpopular leader is not a crime, and to say or act otherwise is an affront to our democracy and a gradual decline into fascism.
The development is even more troubling when one takes into cognisance the fact that this is happening during a supposed political campaign season when people should not be restrained by certain laws that forbid electioneering outside the stipulated and known political campaign season. majority of dispassionate and patriotic Nigerians now believe the country, as it is currently being run, is far from what can or should be considered a democracy, and it is hard to fault them because irrefutable proof abounds to support their position.
While most of the politicians have made up their minds on their sinister objectives of undermining the election process and derailing Nigeria’s democracy, it is incumbent on the citizens to rise to the occasion and become the guardrail of democracy, even if that comes at a steep price.
