Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC, has condemned the continued clamp down on citizens participating in, or associated with, the ongoing #Endbadgovernance peaceful protest in Nigeria against economic hardship and widespread suffering under the President Bola Tinubu administration.
RULAAC Executive Director, Okechukwu Nwanguma in a statement on Monday, said: “We received information of 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.
“They and others were arrested by the State Security Service, SSS, about 2 a.m., on August 5, 2024
“It is never an offense when citizens peacefully protest to call the attention of government to their 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.
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“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.
“Such actions show a lack of respect for human rights and democratic ideals and undermine 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.
“RULAAC calls 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 clampdown on them,” the statement added.
