HRF Report: Nigeria now full authoritarian state — APM

By Luminous Jannamike ABUJA – The Allied People’s Movement (APM) has cited a report by the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) to declare that Nigeria is now a ‘full authoritarian state’, calling for international sanctions against officials allegedly undermining democracy and urging Nigerians to vote out the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027. The party said the warning was no longer about ordinary political disagreements, alleging that democratic institutions, security and anti-corruption agencies and the courts were being deployed against opposition parties and dissenting voices, while citizens were increasingly losing confidence in the country’s democratic system. APM National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, made the position known in a statement on Sunday, saying the party’s earlier warnings about what it described as authoritarian tendencies had been reinforced by the HRF’s Tyranny Tracker report.

“The report confirms APM’s position that under President Tinubu, Nigeria’s constitutional democracy and democratic institutions have been captured by executive authoritarianism,” Yusuf said. The party called on the United Nations, European Union, African Union, Commonwealth, United States, United Kingdom, France and other international partners to intervene diplomatically, including through visa bans, asset freezes and other measures against Nigerian officials it accused of undermining democracy. APM also alleged that security agencies had been used to suppress protests and criticism, with citizens allegedly killed, beaten, arrested, detained or charged with treason.

It further claimed that more than 628,000 Nigerians had been killed and 2.2 million abducted during the period under review, amid continued attacks by terrorists on communities. On press freedom, the party alleged that about 100 journalists had been brutalised or detained while covering pro-democracy protests or engaging in critical reporting. “Today in Nigeria, freedom of expression and the media have been suppressed with about 100 journalists brutalized and detained by authorities for covering pro-democracy protests or critical reporting,” it said.

The APM also accused the government of restricting opposition parties by allegedly using security agencies to intimidate, harass, detain and prosecute opposition leaders, while denying them access to venues for political mobilisation.