ABUJA, Nigeria – The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, GCON, has demanded the immediate and unconditional release of five young Nigerian citizens reportedly arrested by state security operatives in Borno State for wearing customized clothing bearing the political slogan “Tinubu Must Go,” political correspondents reported from the Federal Capital Territory on Wednesday afternoon, September 30, 2026.
The opposition leader warned that criminalizing peaceful civic expressions and non-violent political dissent strikes at the core of Nigeria’s constitutional democracy, challenging law enforcement authorities to explain to the public how displaying a political opinion on a shirt constitutes a statutory offense under the laws of the federation.
Okay News reports that in an official press statement released in Abuja by the Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku drew a sharp contrast between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s past as an activist politician and his present administrative conduct in office.
The former vice president recalled that President Tinubu had exercised his fundamental civil liberties by leading mass street demonstrations against the removal of fuel subsidies under the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan in January 2012, only to oversee an acute economic crisis that has inflated the pump price of petrol, foodstuffs, transportation, and electricity tariffs beyond the reach of everyday citizens.
“Tinubu opposed Jonathan’s fuel policy in the streets,” Atiku noted in the statement. “Nigerians are living with the consequences of Tinubu’s fuel policy in their homes. Parents are cutting meals. Workers can scarcely afford the journey to work. Families are being crushed by bills that rise faster than their income. And when citizens put their anger on a T-shirt, the response is reportedly an arrest. What kind of democracy grants its President the right to protest, then takes that right away from everyone else?”
Atiku emphasized that expressing political dissatisfaction is an inherent constitutional guarantee protected under Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), arguing that the slogan printed on the garments represented an ordinary aspiration for democratic leadership change ahead of the 2027 general elections rather than a threat to national security.
“‘Tinubu Must Go’ is a demand for political change,” the statement continued. “It is not a weapon, a threat or a crime. President Tinubu can disagree with those words. He can campaign against them. He cannot make people disappear into custody for wearing them.”
The ADC standard-bearer called on security formations and military authorities in Borno State to immediately disclose the exact detention facility holding the five young citizens, grant them unrestricted access to their legal counsel and family members, and effect their immediate release if no penal offense other than the political inscription prompted their arrest.
Reiterating that what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, Atiku maintained that just as President Tinubu enjoyed the democratic latitude to tell past administrations that their economic policies were inflicting hardship on the electorate, ordinary Nigerians must enjoy equal constitutional protection to express grievances regarding current governance realities without fear of custodial retribution.
