Atiku has accused Tinubu’s Government of silencing critics and turning Nigeria into a police state.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of systematically suppressing free speech and undermining Nigeria’s democratic foundations.
In a strongly worded statement released Sunday, Atiku warned that the “creeping culture of repression” under Tinubu was transforming the federal government into a “bully that thrives on fear and intimidation.”
He said countless Nigerians were either facing trial or languishing in detention for exercising their constitutional rights, noting that both local and international human rights groups have repeatedly sounded the alarm over the administration’s growing intolerance for dissent.
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Citing the Cybercrime Act, Atiku described it as a modern tool for silencing critics.
“This Tinubu government has metamorphosed into a leviathan — one that feeds on fear and seeks to silence the very voices that sustain democracy,” he said. “It is a chilling reminder of the old Sedition Laws that civilised societies have long discarded.”
Atiku condemned any legislation that restricts citizens from criticizing leaders, insisting that such actions represent an assault on free speech and human rights.
He further accused the Tinubu administration of responding to the nation’s economic hardship and public protests with brute force instead of empathy, turning peaceful demonstrators into prisoners.
“Rather than listen to the cries of hungry Nigerians, this government treats dissent as treason,” he lamented.
The former Vice President also blasted the government for disobeying court orders and jailing journalists and protesters, describing the Tinubu administration’s human rights record as one of the worst since the return of democracy.
According to him, Amnesty International, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), and Media Rights Agenda have all condemned the government’s increasing attacks on press freedom and civil liberties.
Atiku alleged that state institutions such as the legislature and judiciary have been reduced to rubber stamps, serving the whims of the presidency rather than acting as checks on executive excesses.
He concluded by declaring that the 2027 general election would be more than a political contest — it would be a battle between Tinubu’s hegemony and the will of the Nigerian people.
“History shows that no despot, no matter how powerful, has ever triumphed over the collective voice of a determined people,” Atiku stated.
