In a statement titled “A Memo To Nigerians: A Call to Collective Voice on the Shrinking Civic Space and Erosion of Citizens’ Rights in Nigeria”, posted on her X handle, Ezekwesili described the government’s recent actions against activists and protesters as “deeply troubling.”
She urged President Tinubu to direct the Inspector-General of Police to immediately release activist Omoyele Sowore and his colleagues, while also calling on Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to apologise publicly to EiE Nigeria Executive Director, Yemi Adamolekun, and another activist, Ms. Nafziger, who were allegedly harassed by security operatives.
“The latest wave of actions against citizens by state security agencies reflects a deeply troubling trend — the steady shrinking of civic space and erosion of citizens’ fundamental rights in our democracy,” Ezekwesili wrote.
She cited several “disturbing cases,” including the police clampdown on protesters supporting Nnamdi Kanu, the harassment of Adamolekun during the #EndSARS memorial, and the repeated arrests of Sowore despite a valid bail order.
According to her, the pattern reveals “an unmistakable dangerous trend of an administration intolerant of dissent, allergic to accountability, and fearful of citizens’ voices.”
Ezekwesili said the strength of any democracy lies in the protection of citizens’ rights and not in the suppression of criticism.
“It is clear that President Tinubu is running a government and security apparatus that are increasingly intolerant of dissent,” she stated. “True strength of a government does not lie in its ability to suppress criticism but in its capacity to protect those who speak truth to power.”
She urged Nigerians to defend their democratic freedoms, warning that “democracy cannot survive on the silencing of conscience.”
