Five men charged in Borno over shirts opposing Nigeria’s president

Police in Nigeria’s Borno State have charged five men after alleging that they wore T-shirts bearing the words “Tinubu Must Go”. The men are Baba Aji Gremami, Mustapha Abba Yemen, Abacha Mohammed Ali, Adam Umar Gubio and Abdulhamid Mohammed. Charges seen by Premium Times accuse them of criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance, disturbing public peace and thuggery.

The charges allege that the men conspired to print the shirts with the intention of causing a breach of public peace in the West End Roundabout community. The alleged offences were brought under sections of the Borno State Penal Code Law. Amnesty International condemned what it described as the arbitrary detention of the five men.

The rights organisation said wearing a shirt expressing political opposition should not be treated as a crime. The organisation called for the men to be released and for the charges to be withdrawn. It accused the Borno State Government and police of using arrests and detention to target opposition parties and their supporters.

Amnesty said political opposition forms part of human rights and urged the government of Governor Babagana Zulum to respect freedom of expression and association and uphold the rule of law. The Borno State Police Command has not issued an official statement on the arrests or charges. Premium Times said it contacted police spokesperson Nahum Daso, who did not answer calls or respond to a text message by the time of publication.

The supplied material contains allegations by police and criticism from Amnesty International, but does not report a court ruling on the case or the men’s responses to the charges.