A pressure group, Take-It-Back Movement, has announced that its June 12 national protest against killings and undemocratic practices by those in power will go on as scheduled.
The group, led by activist, Omoyele Sowore, said this in a statement by its National Coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu.
It decried what it called hollow ceremonies and official pageantry that usually accompany the day, calling on all Nigerians to rise against undemocratic elements in power.
“We will not participate in the hypocrisy of celebrating freedom where none exists. Instead, we declare this day a national day of resistance, a day to stand against tyranny and bad governance.
“Freedom of speech is under attack. The state has turned on its citizens with an unrelenting campaign of intimidation and censorship.
“Journalists are harassed. Activists are detained. Citizens are arrested for social media posts. Through weaponisation of the Cybercrime Act, government agents now stalk the digital footprints of dissenters, silencing legitimate criticism and criminalising free expression.
“And while the voices in the streets are silenced, the cries from rural communities echo unheard. In Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna, and across the Middle Belt, mass killings continue with terrifying frequency. Whole communities are decimated. Lives are snuffed out without consequences.
“Internally displaced persons multiply, while perpetrators roam free. The bloodletting has become a routine, and the state remains complicit through its inaction, negligence, or outright denial. This is not a democracy. This is organised cruelty.
“This June 12, we march not just for ourselves, but for the slain in Benue, the displaced in Plateau, the silenced in detention, and the starving masses abandoned by the corrupt elite,” the group stated.