The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has condemned in the strongest terms, the continued clampdown on citizens participating in, or associated with, the ongoing peaceful protest in Nigeria.
The protest, #EndBadGovernment is against economic hardship and widespread suffering in Nigeria under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
A statement signed by the Executive Director of RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said that RULAAC received the information about the arrest of Mr. Tunde Oluajo a.k.a. Sankara, a human rights activist and anti-corruption campaigner, and Michael Adaramoye, the National Coordinator of Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), in Abuja.
Nwanguma said: “They and others were arrested by the State Security Service (SSS) at about 2 a.m. on Monday August 5, 2024. It is never an offence when citizens peacefully protest to call the attention of the government to the plight and pains of their fellow citizens. The citizens are simply making legitimate demands for good governance. The repressive clampdown by security agencies underscores the government’s insensitivity and despotic disposition.
“The continued clampdown on protesters and protest organizers in Nigeria is indeed a contradiction to the Tinubu government’s claim to respect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.
“It reflects an intolerance for dissent and demonstrates insincerity and hypocrisy by the same government that acknowledges the right of citizens to freedom of expression and the right to demand good governance devoid of corruption.”
According to Nwanguma, such actions showed a lack of respect for human rights and democratic ideals and undermined the government’s credibility in promoting and protecting these rights.
“The use of force, intimidation, and arbitrary arrests to suppress peaceful protesters is unacceptable in a democratic society and goes against the principles of freedom of expression and assembly as enshrined in international human rights treaties that Nigeria has ratified.”
Therefore, RULAAC called for the immediate release of all citizens arrested by the SSS and other security agencies in connection with the peaceful exercise of their democratic rights.
“The government should respect citizens’ rights to protest peacefully and dialogue with them to address their grievances rather than clamp down on them,” Nwanguma stressed.
