By Ado Oyeyemi
Five men have been arrested in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, for allegedly wearing T-shirts bearing the inscription, “Tinubu Must Go.”
The men were identified as Baba Aji Gremami, Mustapha Abba Yemen, Abacha Mohammed Ali, Adam Umar Gubio and Abdulhamid Mohammed.
Amnesty International disclosed the arrests in a statement on Tuesday, condemning the detention and calling for the immediate release of the men.
The rights organisation said wearing a T-shirt expressing political dissent should not constitute a criminal offence, describing the expression of political views as part of the rights to freedom of expression and association.
Amnesty urged the authorities to release the five men unconditionally and drop any charges that may have been brought against them over the shirts.
“The right to show and express political opinion is not exclusive to only one political party,” the organisation said.
Amnesty also alleged that the Borno State Government and the police had increasingly targeted opposition parties and their supporters through arrests and detention.
The organisation called on the state government and security agencies to respect citizens’ rights to peaceful expression and association, while urging them not to use state powers to suppress political dissent.
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The rights group further urged the authorities to uphold the rule of law and ensure that citizens are allowed to express political opinions peacefully.
