Atiku Abubakar, has called on Nigerians to exercise their rights to protest against economic hardship in the country.
Atiku Abubakar said the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) guaranteed citizens the right to protest peacefully.
Atiku Abubakar said the accusation and threat from the Presidency that some persons were behind the protest was an exercise in futility.
There have also been other indirect threats from the Presidency to Nigerians concerning the protest tagged “End bad Governance”. So it’s new, Atiku added
Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution (as altered) unequivocally guarantees the right to peaceful assembly and association.
“Chasing shadows and contriving purported persons behind the planned protests is an exercise in futility when it is obvious that Nigerians, including supporters of Tinubu and the ruling APC, are caught up in the hunger, anger, and hopelessness brought about by the incompetence and cluelessness of this government.”
Atiku Abubakar also, recalled that President Tinubu, his supporters and his party, All Progressives Congress (APC) led a protest in 2012 against the government of former president, Goodluck Jonathan.
Atiku warned the federal government that any attempt to suppress the rights of citizens to protest in August would be seen as direct affront to Nigeria’s democracy.