The Take-It-Back Movement, led by human rights activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, has announced plans to mark this year’s June 12 Democracy Day not with celebrations, but with a nationwide protest aimed at challenging worsening insecurity, repression, and what it describes as the dismantling of Nigeria’s democratic foundations.
In a statement issued by the movement’s National Coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu, the group criticized official June 12 ceremonies as "empty rituals" that no longer reflect the realities faced by ordinary Nigerians. “We will not participate in the hypocrisy of celebrating freedom where none exists,” the statement declared. “Instead, we declare this day a national day of resistance a day to stand against tyranny and bad governance.”
The group accused the government of orchestrating a systematic assault on civil liberties and democratic norms, pointing to a disturbing pattern of journalist harassment, activist detentions, and the increasing use of the Cybercrime Act to suppress dissent on digital platforms.
“Freedom of speech is under attack. Journalists are harassed. Activists are detained. Citizens are arrested for social media posts,” the statement read. “The Cybercrime Act has become a weapon of repression, used to stalk and silence the voices of dissent.”
Beyond the repression of speech and activism, the group condemned ongoing violence across Nigeria’s central and northern regions, particularly in Benue, Plateau, Southern Kaduna, and other parts of the Middle Belt. It cited the continued mass killings, forced displacements, and the failure of the state to hold perpetrators accountable.
“Internally displaced persons are increasing in number, while the killers of innocent civilians walk free. Blood flows routinely, and the government through inaction, negligence, or outright denial has become complicit. This is not democracy; this is organized cruelty,” the movement stated.
The June 12 protest, according to the group, is intended to honour not only the heroes of Nigeria’s historic democratic struggle, such as the late MKO Abiola, but also today’s victims the murdered, the voiceless, and the abandoned.
“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 neglected by a corrupt elite,” the statement emphasized.
The Take-It-Back Movement is now mobilizing Nigerians across all states to take to the streets in peaceful protest, demanding an end to impunity, justice for victims of state and non-state violence, and the restoration of genuine democratic governance.
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