Nigerian lawyer and activist, Dele Farotimi, has voiced concerns over what he describes as growing repression under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking during Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Thursday, Dele Farotimi, a former spokesperson for the 2023 Labour Party presidential campaign, stated that it is becoming increasingly unsafe to express dissenting views.
He criticised the administration’s approach to governance, questioning whether Nigerians are still in a democracy or experiencing a form of military dictatorship.
“In the administration of Tinubu, there is the ambiguity of whether we are in a military dictatorship or a democracy. It is very easy to forget exactly what kind of government we have in place. The level of depression of free speech and the readiness to criminalise every civic disagreement,” he said.
Dele Farotimi stressed that free speech is under threat, adding:
“It is becoming increasingly dangerous to speak; I don’t know how much of this is traceable to the President or his temperament. Unfortunately, when the fish rots, it begins from the head. There is always somebody on whose desktop the buck must stop.”
Dele Farotimi concluded by saying that Nigerians are not feeling the democratic promises President Tinubu claims to project.
This comes after Tinubu, in his June 12 Democracy Day speech, stated:
“Our democracy is not invincible, but it is alive.”
