The Action Alliance (AA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ensure that his administration works to protect and defend citizens’ democratic rights.
The national chairman of the party, Dr Adekunle Rufai Omo-Aje, made the call in his message to mark the 30th anniversary of the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential elections.
Omo-Aje said President Tinubu can demonstrate his avowed belief in democracy if he selflessly delivers the dividends of democracy to all Nigerians regardless of social status or ethnic, religious, or political affiliation.
He added that the only way citizens’ longstanding aspirations and hope in true democracy, encapsulated in the long-drawn struggle against the annulment of June 12, can be met is when Nigerians can choose their leaders in a free, fair, and transparent process devoid of violence and ethnic and religious hatred.
According to him: “The Democracy Day celebrated today stands as a symbol of Nigerians’ steadfast struggle against military despotism and for democratic governance.
“While it is important to recognise and honour the heroes of this remarkable struggle, as past regimes have done, we believe that far more important is the need for Nigerians to fully enjoy their democratic rights in the selection of who governs them.”
He added that they also must begin to feel the dividends of democracy, for which they sweated, struggled, and died during those long years of street battles and protests against military rule.
“It has been over 24 years since democratic rule was restored in Nigeria, but it is arguable whether the form of governance that exists in Nigeria today can be described as a democracy or simply civilian rule,” he stressed.
According to him, while there has been some marked progress in terms of a thriving multiparty democracy and regular elections, Nigeria’s record of human rights violations has not fundamentally improved.
He noted that since 1999, Nigeria has experienced systematic attacks on democratic rights, attacks on the opposition, shrinking civic space, arbitrary arrests, illegal detentions, torture, and extrajudicial killings by security agents, as well as suppression of the rights to freedom of expression and assembly, violation of the principles of separation of powers, assault on the judiciary, and press freedom.
Omo-Aje while congratulating Nigerians on the celebration, said his party would continue to ensure that the dividends of democracy get to every nook and cranny of the country and that the sacrifice of the actors of June 12 is not in vain.
