Amnesty International has condemned the arbitrary detention of five men by the Borno State Police Command for wearing T-shirts with the caption: “Tinubu Must Go” in Maiduguri.
Those detained are Baba Aji Gremami; Mustapha Abba Yemen; Abacha Mohammed Ali; Adam Umar Gubio; and Abdulhamid Mohammed.
Amnesty condemned their remand in prison after they were accused of “the intent to cause breach of public peace within West End Roundabout Community, Maiduguri” simply for wearing a T-shirt with a message of political dissent.
According to the organisation, their action is not a crime because asserting political opposition is a human right.
"The authorities must immediately release all of those detained and drop any purported plan to put them through a sham trial based on bogus charges. The right to show and express political opinion is not exclusive to only one political party.
"Borno state government and the police have increasingly been carrying out repressive arrests and detentions targeting opposition political parties and their supporters.
"Authorities in Borno State have resorted to the familiar playbook of using the law to criminalise peaceful dissent and silence opposition.
"The government of Babagana Umara Zulum must not engage in cracking down on peaceful dissent and unleashing the punitive power of the state on political opponents. The government must uphold and ensure the rights of everyone to freedom of expression and association and respect the rule of law," Amnesty said.
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