APM Demands Global Punishment for Democracy Saboteurs

The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has formally requested the international community to impose a range of diplomatic sanctions against Nigerian government officials. These measures, including Visa bans and asset freezing, are sought due to concerns that these officials are actively undermining Nigeria’s democracy. The opposition party has specifically urged International Development partners, democratic institutions, and allies of Nigeria, such as the United Nations, European Union, African Union, the Commonwealth of Nations, the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and France, to implement robust diplomatic actions. The APM's objective is to safeguard the nation and protect its over 200 million citizens, who, according to the party, are currently subjected to authoritarian rule under President Bola Tinubu's administration.

Furthermore, the APM has issued a call to action for Nigerians themselves, including the media, civil society organizations, other opposition parties, and various organized groups across the country. They are encouraged to coalesce efforts to reclaim the nation’s democracy from what the APM describes as the brutal and repressive authoritarianism of the President Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration. The party has exhorted Nigerians to set aside divisive considerations, actively resist authoritarianism, and decisively vote out President Bola Tinubu and the APC in the upcoming 2027 presidential election.

This urgent appeal from the APM follows its consistent warnings regarding the authoritarian inclinations of the Tinubu-led APC government. These alarms have been further corroborated by a disturbing report published on the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) Tyranny Tracker platform, www.tyrannytracker.org. The report explicitly states that Nigeria has transitioned into a full authoritarian state under President Tinubu. According to a statement released by APM’s national publicity secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, the HRF report unequivocally confirms the APM’s longstanding position that under President Tinubu’s leadership, Nigeria’s constitutional democracy and its foundational democratic institutions have been effectively captured by executive authoritarianism.

The APM elaborated on its concerns, asserting that security agencies, anti-corruption bodies, and the courts have been repurposed as instruments against opposition parties and dissenting voices, fostering an environment where citizens live in despair and fear of the government in power. The APM spokesman also highlighted that, beyond the ongoing incursions by terrorists which have allegedly resulted in “over 628,000 Nigerians killed and 2.2 million others abducted under President Tinubu’s watch,” the HRF Report corroborates the use of security agencies to violently suppress citizens. This suppression has reportedly led to scores of deaths and hundreds of individuals being beaten, arrested, detained, and even charged with treason merely for criticizing the Tinubu administration.

In present-day Nigeria, the APM claims that freedom of expression and media freedom have been severely curtailed. Approximately 100 journalists have reportedly been brutalized and detained by authorities for their coverage of pro-democracy protests or for engaging in critical reporting. Additionally, under President Tinubu’s oversight, authorities are accused of continually restricting opposition parties. This includes employing security agencies to intimidate, harass, detain, and prosecute opposition leaders on fabricated charges, while simultaneously denying opposition parties access to essential venues for political mobilization. In many APC-controlled states, opposition parties are reportedly denied access to media platforms and the right to erect campaign billboards.

A particularly unsettling aspect, as highlighted by the APM, is the compromised conduct and activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under Professor Josiah Amupitan, who is described as a known Tinubu apologist. These issues include undue interferences in the internal affairs of opposition parties and a refusal to adhere to court orders that favor such parties. Consequently, the APM asserts that the majority of Nigerians have lost faith in the integrity of INEC, in its current configuration, to conduct credible general elections in 2027 that will truly reflect the will of the people.

The APM further expressed its alarm that the APC-led National Assembly has become overtly compromised, now functioning as a mere rubber stamp for authoritarianism, in direct contravention of its constitutional mandate to provide checks and balances on the executive branch. Characteristic of authoritarian regimes, the Tinubu-led APC administration is accused of continuing to impose severe strain on citizens and businesses through asphyxiating economic policies, the implementation of multiple taxes, indirect levies, and the condoning of harassment related to revenue collection.

The APM voiced profound worry that if the current situation in Nigeria remains unaddressed, it could escalate into a crisis of monumental proportions. Such a crisis, the party warns, is capable of derailing the nation’s democracy and triggering a large-scale humanitarian disaster that would have negative repercussions not only for neighboring countries but also for the international community at large. In conclusion, the party urged Nigerians to leverage the 2027 general elections as a decisive opportunity to elect a genuinely democratic and people-oriented government, on the platform of the APM, as a collective commitment to preserve Nigeria's democracy and restore the nation to the path of Rule of Law, economic prosperity, and national stability.