As nationwide protests loom in Abuja demanding Nnamdi Kanu’s release, the Ohanaeze Youth Council cautions President Tinubu and top security chiefs against suppressing citizens’ constitutional freedoms.
The Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC) has issued a stern warning to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Nigeria’s top security chiefs, cautioning them against any attempt to violate the fundamental rights of citizens participating in the nationwide #FreeNnamdiKanu protest slated for Monday, October 20, 2025.
The protest, which will take place in Abuja and other parts of the country, is being organized to demand the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Kanu has remained in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since June 2021, despite several court rulings ordering his release.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Sunday, the National President of the OYC, Comrade Igboayaka O. Igboayaka, urged President Tinubu, Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, and Director-General of the DSS Adeola Ajayi to uphold the constitutional rights of protesters. He emphasized that any form of harassment, assault, or intimidation against peaceful demonstrators would constitute a grave violation of the Nigerian Constitution.
“I remind Nigeria’s police boss, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, DSS boss, Mr. Adeola Ajayi, and President Bola Tinubu that none of them is above the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended),” Igboayaka declared.
He further called on the security chiefs to familiarise themselves with Chapter IV of the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantees fundamental human rights such as freedom of expression, assembly, and movement. According to him, Nigerians have every legal and moral right to gather peacefully and voice their dissatisfaction with government actions, including the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu.
“I implore the Inspector-General of Police, the DSS Director-General, and President Tinubu to engage a patriotic Nigerian lawyer who can educate them on the fundamental human rights enshrined in the Constitution,” Igboayaka said, adding that “no judicial pronouncement anywhere in the world can prohibit citizens from forming assemblies or gatherings for peaceful protests.”
The OYC president described the upcoming protest—organized under the Pan-Nigerian platform led by human rights activist Omoyele Sowore—as both legitimate and constitutional. He said the demonstration represents a collective demand for justice and accountability in a nation where citizens’ freedoms are increasingly under threat.
Igboayaka stressed that the world would be watching how Nigeria’s leadership and security institutions handle the October 20 protest, warning that their actions would either project Nigeria as a democracy that respects human rights or expose it as a repressive state.
“Bola Tinubu, Kayode Egbetokun, and Adeola Ajayi have the option to reveal Nigeria to the international community as a nation where human rights are either violated or respected, depending on their actions on October 20,” he said.
He further urged the Inspector-General of Police to “reclaim his lost service credibility” by ensuring maximum protection for peaceful demonstrators. “I urge the IGP to assign a necessary security contingent to safeguard Nigerians as they exercise their fundamental human rights on October 20, 2025, in Abuja,” he advised.
The OYC also reminded the Federal Government that the right to peaceful assembly and association remains a cornerstone of democracy and must be defended at all costs. Any attempt to suppress the upcoming #FreeNnamdiKanu protest, Igboayaka warned, would not only be unconstitutional but also deepen Nigeria’s human rights crisis.
The planned protest is expected to draw a wide coalition of civil society groups, human rights advocates, and pro-democracy organizations nationwide. These groups insist that continued defiance of court orders regarding Kanu’s release undermines the rule of law and Nigeria’s democratic credentials.
As anticipation builds across the country, the OYC’s warning serves as both a reminder and a challenge to the Tinubu administration, to choose between upholding the constitutional rights of Nigerians or descending further into authoritarianism.
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