FREE OMOYELE SOWORE NOW!

 WITHDRAW THE CYBERCRIME CHARGES!

END THE TINUBU REGIME’S WAR ON DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS!

The Youth Rights Campaign (YRC) strongly condemns the revocation of the bail of civil rights activist and presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC) Omoyele Sowore by Justice M.G. Umar and the disgraceful manner in which operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) reportedly seized him within the court premises. This outrageous attack on democratic rights further exposes the anti-people and authoritarian character of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu/APC regime, which increasingly relies on the courts and security agencies to suppress dissent while insecurity, poverty and mass misery deepen across the country.

The conduct of Justice M.G. Umar throughout the proceedings has demonstrated an unacceptable level of bias and hostility toward the defendant. We recall that that he once ordered Sowore’s lawyer, Mr Marshall Abubakar, to kneel in court. This constitutes a gross abuse of judicial authority and further diminish public confidence in a judiciary that increasingly appears subservient to the interests of the ruling elite.

Nigerian Constitution, despite its limitations, guarantees every citizen the right to fair hearing before an independent and impartial tribunal. The principle against bias, embodied in the rules of natural justice and the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers, demands that Justice M.G. Umar immediately recuse himself from this matter. Justice must not only be done but must be seen to have been done.

We strongly hold that the persecution of Omoyele Sowore under the Cybercrime Act and the use of state institutions to intimidate and repress critics are part of a broader offensive against democratic rights. The Tinubu regime, confronted with growing mass anger over hunger, unemployment, inflation, insecurity and the collapse of living standards for the vast majority, seeks to silence opposition as it significantly contributes to the conditions that condemn millions to misery with its neo- liberal and capitalist policies

While terrorists and bandits continue to abduct innocent Nigerians, slaughter community people and hold women and children captive, the government has chosen to direct its energy toward harassing journalists, activists and critics. This shameful priority reveals a ruling class more afraid of the voices of the oppressed than of the criminals terrorising society.

The Youth Rights Campaign warns the Tinubu administration, its security agencies and all institutions being used to attack democratic rights that there is a limit to what the Nigerian masses can tolerate. Hunger, poverty and repression cannot continue indefinitely without provoking resistance. Genuine stability can only be built on social justice, democratic rights and economic policies that place the interests of working people above those of the rich elite and multinational corporations.

We therefore demand:

1. The immediate and unconditional release of Omoyele Sowore.
2. The immediate withdrawal of all Cybercrime Act charges against him.
3. The immediate recusal of Justice M.G. Umar from the matter in accordance with constitutional guarantees of fair hearing and the principle against judicial bias.
4. An independent investigation into the conduct of DSS operatives and an end to the use of security agencies to intimidate activists and opposition voices.
5. The repeal of all draconian laws used to criminalise free speech and dissent.
6. Respect for freedom of expression, assembly and association as guaranteed under the Constitution.
7. An end to the anti-poor policies of the Tinubu administration that have plunged millions into unprecedented hardship.

The YRC calls on trade unions, student unions, civil society organisations, socialist groups, pro-democracy activists and the international human rights community to speak out against this dangerous descent into authoritarianism. Silence in the face of repression only emboldens tyranny.

The struggle for democratic rights is inseparable from the struggle against exploitation and oppression. The working people and youth of Nigeria must unite to build a mass movement that consistently resists anti-people capitalist policies and attacks on democratic rights. Ultimately, such a movement must fight for a socialist alternative in which the enormous wealth of society is democratically controlled and utilised to guarantee jobs, education, healthcare, housing and a decent life for all.

Michael Adaramoye Lenin

National Coordinator

Francis Nwapa

National Secretary

YRC email: [email protected]