ADC Decries Police Clampdown On ‘Tinubu Must Go’ Rally In Kano

The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has condemned the disruption of the peaceable “Tinubu Must Go” rally in Kano by the Kano State Police Command, describing the motion as shameful, unconstitutional and a descent into authoritarianism.

In an announcement on Sunday by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, the council stated the police violated Nigerians’ rights to peaceable meeting and freedom of expression as assured by the 1999 Constitution, as amended.

The rally, led by Barrister Abba Hikima and organised by involved youths, was reportedly disrupted after police operatives barricaded The Avenue Event Center, venue of the gathering, and allegedly intimidated members.

Despite the barricade, the youths insisted on holding the rally, a transfer the ADC-PCC stated confirmed braveness and willpower to not be silenced.

The council additionally condemned the reported arrest of the proprietor of The Avenue Event Center for allegedly permitting his facility for use for the occasion, describing it as proof of intolerance for dissent by the APC-led authorities.

“This is not democracy. This is tyranny. For how long will the APC continue to use the police to suppress dissenting voices?” Ologbondiyan queried.

He stated it was ironic {that a} authorities that claims to uphold democratic values seems threatened by residents exercising their constitutional rights.

“The message from Kano is loud and clear: Nigerians are tired, hungry and angry. You can stop a rally and arrest a venue owner, but you cannot arrest hunger in the land. You cannot barricade the anger and frustration of over 200 million people,” he stated.

Ologbondiyan stated the federal government’s priorities had been misplaced, insisting that the identical willpower displayed in disrupting the rally ought to as a substitute be directed in direction of tackling insecurity, banditry and the crushing price of dwelling.

“If the APC government had deployed the same energy it used to stop a peaceful rally at The Avenue Event Center to tackle insecurity, banditry and the excruciating cost of living, Nigeria would be a safer and more prosperous nation,” he added.

The council known as on the Inspector-General of Police and the Kano State Police Command to make sure the speedy and unconditional launch of the occasion centre proprietor, if nonetheless in custody, and to desist from actions able to turning the police into an instrument of political oppression.

It additionally urged civil society organisations, human rights teams and the worldwide group to pay shut consideration to what it described as a harmful erosion of democratic freedoms in Nigeria.

“The right to protest is not a privilege granted by the police or the APC; it is a right guaranteed by the Constitution. No amount of intimidation will stop Nigerians from demanding change.”