The Federal Government of Nigeria has been accused of exhibiting “executive lawlessness” after levelling treasonable felony charges against some of the #EndBadGovernance protesters.

Senior legal practitioners and civil society organisations said the government’s action was to deter Nigerians from protesting against the policies of the administration even when they inflicted suffering on the people.

No fewer than 10 of the #EndBadGovernance protesters arrested in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, and Gombe were arraigned on Monday before Justice Emeka Nwite of a Federal High Court in Abuja.

They were accused of waging war against the state to intimidate the President by attacking and injuring police officers and burning police stations, the Nigerian Communications Commission complex, the Kano printing press, among others, during the protests held between August 1 and 10.

The protests were driven by widespread hardship resulting from the removal of the fuel subsidy, electricity tariff hike, and the high cost of living, among other issues.

No fewer than 17 people were reportedly killed in Abuja, Kano, Niger, Borno, Kaduna, and Jigawa, while others were injured as security operatives attempted to quell the unrest. A total of 1,135 people were arrested during the protests.

However, the 10 protesters who were arraigned pleaded not guilty to the six counts filed against them in the FHC/ABJ/CR/454/2024 suit.

Commenting on the charges, foremost legal practitioners warned the Federal Government against trivialising treason and branding dissent and protest as treasonous.

A human rights lawyer, Jiti Ogunye, said the treason charge against the protesters depicted the unseriousness and recklessness of the FG, declaring that the security agencies were also “treason-happy.”

According to Ogunye, President Bola Tinubu’s administration was displaying lawlessness by branding the protesters as wanting to topple the government.

He said the charge was a futile effort, stating that the government could not secure any conviction on the case.

Ogunye said, “Historically, every administration we’ve had in Nigeria, since the colonial era, has unfortunately treated dissents and political opposition as criminal and treasonable. But they didn’t succeed in the accusations.

“Treason has become commonplace, and I am worried that protests and civil disobedience could be branded as treason or treasonable felonies.

“I was not expecting the Attorney General of the country to do that because it is a futile effort. They can never get any conviction based on treason. Treason is the height of crimes in Nigeria.”

According to him, freedom of expression is an essential element of democracy, noting that exercising that right shouldn’t be branded as treason.

“When you are building a democratic society, and you want to deepen it, the concomitant of it is the right to freedom of expression, which includes protest.

“The exercise of that right ought not to lead to a hasty and unthinking resort to treason or treasonable felony. It’s too cheap,” he added.

He warned the government not to make treason a cheap offence.

“The impression they are creating is that the administration is not loved, and people want to overthrow a government that is not up to two years old.

“The government is just recklessly and unthinkingly branding dissent and protest as treasonous conduct. It is unreasonable and reckless on the part of the government agents who are doing these things.”

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Isiaka Olagunju, expressed doubt about the ability of the prosecutors to prove the treasonable charge against the protesters.

He said the allegations against the accused persons would depend on the proof of evidence against each of them.

A legal practitioner and academic, Timothy Tugbiyele, said protests could not be classified as treasonable.

Tugbiyele, who claimed to have lectured the present Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, stressed that the current legal actions against the demonstrators were an attempt by the Federal Government to discourage Nigerians from protesting.

In a video that went viral on social media, Tugbiyele appealed directly to Fagbemi to withdraw the charges against the protesters.

He stated, “I believe these demonstrators are being tried for treason just to deter other Nigerians from demonstrating. Demonstrators claimed that they were protesting against hunger in the land which is real to many Nigerians. They said they were demonstrating against bad governance, so, when and how can demonstration against bad governance and hunger in the land turn to treason?

“Chief Lateef Fagbemi, senior at the Bar and as someone who has been practising law since 1980, I am respectfully asking you to reconsider these charges. Demonstration is not treason.”

Another SAN, Yusuf Ali, said no country would allow any violent protest under any guise, noting that the right to (peaceful protest) was constitutionally guaranteed.

“The right to peaceful protest is guaranteed, but there is no country where people will go to protest and kill other people and destroy property,” he stated.

In his view, a former Chairman of the Section on Public Interest of the Nigerian Bar Association, Monday Ubani, said the court would discharge and acquit the accused persons if the government could not present convincing evidence.

According to Ubani, the law would have to take its course for any protester who embarked on the destruction of property during the demonstration.

He emphasised that treason was a crime that demanded serious evidence before conviction.

CSOs demand withdrawal of charges

The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights asked the Federal Government to stop the prosecution of the protesters, adding that the violence that greeted the #EndBadGovernance protest was a result of dereliction of duty on the part of security agencies.

The President of the group, Debo Adeniran, argued that the treason accusation against the protesters lacked substance, warning that security agents should not hold the demonstrators responsible for their failure in intelligence gathering.

He maintained that if intelligence had been tight, killing, disruption of property, and other violent activities would have been detected before they were carried out.

Adeniran said, “The Federal Government is not specific about the accusations against the protesters. They just generalise criminal allegations as if they are ordinary exchanges among people.

“Those people don’t deserve to be charged with treasonable offences. We all agree, including government officials, that every Nigerian has the right to protest. And if anything had gone wrong, it is a result of laxity on the part of the state apparatus.

“We advise the government to withdraw those charges and enter a nolle prosequi, at least against the protesters who were not caught at the scenes of the crime. The Federal Government should stop the prosecution and free the protesters unconditionally.”

Commenting on the matter, the Country First Movement described the treason charges against the protesters as a contradiction of the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution.

According to the convener of the movement, Prof. Chris Nwaokobia, it was out of place for the government to arraign protesters on such charges when they had the constitutional right to assemble and express themselves freely.

Speaking with Sunday PUNCH, Nwaokobia called on the government to free the protesters.

He said, “You don’t accuse people who were openly expressing their rights to assemble, protest, and disagree. You don’t charge them with treason. Treason is an offence punishable by death.

“It is absurd to accuse people protesting of attempting to overthrow the government. How were they going to do that? Were they armed? Did you arrest them in the process of arson?

“You don’t brand people who are in absolute compliance with the provisions of Chapter 4 of the Constitution as people committing a crime. You don’t lump them into a treasonable phenomenon. The charge contradicts the provisions of the constitution. We are appalled, disappointed, and we disagree completely with the government’s position.”

The Osun Civil Societies Coalition called on President Tinubu to avoid any form of tyranny in his administration, describing the charges against the protesters as an act of dictatorship and oppression.

The Secretary of the OCSC, Emmanuel Olowu, called on the FG to withdraw the charges against the protesters, adding that the judiciary should also dismiss the case in the interest of the constitution.

A human rights activist, Deji Adeyanju, declared the treason charges against the protesters as an assault on democracy. He called on the judiciary not to legitimise attempts to criminalise protests.

“It is a major assault on our democracy. It shows that the government is not interested in the protection of citizens’ rights and ensuring constitutionalism.

“It is disturbing that a government that is not angry about the mass killings in Yobe State is angry about protests. They are doing all these things to prevent protests completely in the country.

“The same people who protested against the Sani Abacha, Babangida, and Goodluck Jonathan administrations no longer want protests. That is absurd! The judiciary must not be part of anything they are doing. They should not legitimise the violation of constitutional provisions,” said Adeyanju.

PUNCH