Presidency criticizes Atiku’s comments on protest handling
By Kunle Sanni
The presidency has strongly criticized former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for advising Nigerian security forces against using lethal force on protesters. Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, responded to Atiku’s comments in a post on X.
Onanuga emphasized that the constitutional rights to assembly and freedom of expression are not absolute and can be curtailed to maintain public peace. Atiku had urged security agencies to refrain from using lethal force against peaceful civilian protesters demonstrating against bad governance and economic hardship.
Onanuga countered that Atiku should have directed his warning at demonstrators in areas like Kaduna and Kano, where some protests have escalated into violence. He stated, “Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar this evening tweeted the absurd: he warned security agencies against using lethal force against looters and arsonists who masqueraded as protesters. As a statesman, his warning ought to be to the looting mob in Kaduna, Kano, Plateau, Jigawa states, who hijacked what was advertised by organizers as a peaceful protest.”
He further added, “Our security forces have remained professional, even-handed, and observed every restraint in the face of extreme provocation by the rioters. We are surprised that Alhaji Atiku is still relying on Section 40 of our constitution (as amended) to justify a protest that is now clearly a riot, a rampage in some parts of the country. Section 45 of the constitution says the right of assembly and the right of freedom of expression are not absolute. They can be abridged and fettered in the interest of public peace, public safety, law, and order. The Service Chiefs reiterated the rights of Nigerians to protest and gather freely. They, however, reinforced their constitutional duty, today, when they said they cannot sit by idly and watch hoodlums destroy the country and its democracy.”
Onanuga commended the Service Chiefs and security officers for their patriotic duty, criticizing Atiku for supporting the protests. He argued, “As a supporter and enabler of the destructive ‘protests’, Alhaji Atiku certainly wants the sinister protest to continue despite the red signals from the streets. A tweet that condones the destruction of private and public property and investments of citizens is unbecoming of a former vice president of Nigeria.”
He concluded by urging Atiku to prioritize the country’s stability over personal interests and to follow the example of opposition figures in the UK, who have condemned riots and called for the prosecution of those responsible for destruction.
