Abuja, Nigeria – Senator Ireti Kingibe, who represents the Federal Capital Territory in Nigeria’s National Assembly, has criticised the curfew imposed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, ahead of the area council elections scheduled for Saturday, February 21, 2026.
The Federal Capital Territory is the administrative capital region of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, located in the central part of the country. It includes the city of Abuja and six area councils that function as local government authorities.
On Thursday, February 19, 2026, during a special broadcast aired on national television and radio stations, Wike, a former governor of Rivers State in southern Nigeria, declared Friday, February 20, 2026, a work free day in the Federal Capital Territory to allow residents prepare for the elections. He also announced a restriction on human and vehicular movement across the territory from 8 p.m. on Friday to 6 p.m. on Saturday, February 21, 2026. All times are West African Time, which is GMT+1.
Reacting in a statement issued on Friday, February 20, 2026, by her Special Assistant on Media, Matilda Duncan, Kingibe described the decision as “authoritarian, ill-considered, and unacceptable in a democratic society.”
She argued that imposing a sweeping curfew across the Federal Capital Territory without wide consultation with key stakeholders amounts to “a direct affront to democratic governance and the constitutional rights of residents.”
“The people of the FCT are not subjects under a dictatorship. They are citizens of a democratic republic. Any sweeping restriction on their movement and livelihoods must be justified by compelling evidence, subjected to scrutiny, and carried out with transparency,” she said.
While acknowledging the importance of maintaining public order during elections, Kingibe stressed that security concerns should not serve as a blanket justification for executive overreach. She warned that the restriction could cause significant economic hardship for small business owners, workers, and families who rely on daily earnings for survival.
According to the senator, there are currently no known security threats in the Federal Capital Territory that justify such a measure. She noted that Saturday’s exercise “is only just area council elections.”
Kingibe maintained that decisions of this scale should be taken only after clear justification, broad consultation, and strict adherence to due process. She called on Wike to immediately review and suspend the curfew, insisting that the rights, freedoms, and economic wellbeing of residents of the Federal Capital Territory “must never be compromised by arbitrary, authoritarian, and draconian executive action.”
The disagreement highlights ongoing political tensions over the management of elections and civil liberties in Nigeria’s capital. Okay News reports that the outcome of this dispute may shape how future electoral security measures are implemented in the Federal Capital Territory.
