Former Vice-President Atiku
Abubakar says civil servants now lose their jobs for criticising politicians in
position of power.
Abubakar said this in a statement
to mark the 25th anniversary of June 12.
He was apparently citing the case
of Bolouere Opukiri, an official of the media unit of the Presidential amnesty
office who lost her job after criticising Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and the
wife of the president.
She had described then acting
president as “a novice” for travelling out of the country at a time President
Muhammadu Buhari was receiving medical treatment in London, and criticised
Aisha Buhari for saying “hyenas and jackals” had taken over her husband’s
government.
She was fired seven days later.
Abubakar said the foundation of a
democratic society is the guarantee of fundamental human rights that gives the
citizenry the freedom of speech.
He noted that it is the exclusive
responsibility of the state through the various security organisations to see
to the protection of these fundamental rights of the people.
He added that there is a growing
culture of arbitrariness in some of the institutions of government at all
levels that is “contradictory to the notion of inclusiveness and fairness that
a democratic society guarantees”.
“Today, across our major cities
and even in the hinterlands, citizens, especially the youth, can hardly walk
freely in open avenues without the police stopping them to search through the
content of their mobile handsets,” he said.
“Civil servants now lose their
jobs just because they choose to criticize politicians in government positions;
there are even suggestions in some quarters that civil servants should be
barred from signing to social media networks.
“Opposition politicians are
regularly being hounded on wanton criminal and civil prosecutions.
“All of these narratives have
become a consistent pattern of behavior that is antithetical to an open and
democratic society.
“In many of the states across the
country, there is a reign of fascism with governors who have suddenly become
overlords dealing ruthlessly with anyone who dares to challenge their ruthless
foothold of intimidation and oppression.
“Perhaps at this point, we need
to remind ourselves that the democracy which we enjoy today did not come cheap
price; It came at the cost of supreme price paid by persons that included Chief
MKO Abiola, Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, Maj-Gen Shehu Yar’Adua, Chief Alfred Rewane
and Bagauda Kaltho, among thousands of other patriots.”
Abubakar reminded the people that
democracy is not merely a mechanism of appointing a government, saying “its
beauty is in the inherent safeguard to the citizenry to live and prosper as
free people under the law”.
He called on all political actors
to let June 12 and all that it embodies, inspire them to promote democratic
principles, especially as Nigeria is about to go to the polls again.
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