In a post on X titled ‘A Memo To Nigerians: A Call to
Collective Voice on the Shrinking Civic Space and Erosion of Citizens’ Rights
in Nigeria’, Ezekwesili condemned what she described as a “deeply troubling
trend” of shrinking civic space and state intolerance of dissent.

She called on Tinubu to immediately order the
Inspector-General of Police to release activist Omoyele Sowore and his
colleagues.

The former minister alao urged Lagos State Governor Babajide
Sanwo-Olu to publicly apologise to EiE Nigeria’s Executive Director, Yemi
Adamolekun, and another activist, Ms Nafziger.

“The latest wave of actions against citizens by state
security agencies reflects a deeply troubling trend — the steady shrinking of
civic space and erosion of citizens’ fundamental rights in our democracy,” she
wrote.

Ezekwesili cited three “disturbing cases,” including the
harassment of Adamolekun during a peaceful memorial for #EndSARS victims, the
police clampdown on protesters supporting Nnamdi Kanu, and the repeated arrest
of Sowore despite a valid court order granting him bail.

According to her, the pattern reveals “an unmistakable
dangerous trend” of an administration “intolerant of dissent, allergic to
accountability, and fearful of citizens’ voices.”

“It is clear that President Tinubu is running a government
and security apparatus that are increasingly intolerant of dissent.

True strength of a government does not lie in its ability to
suppress criticism, but in its capacity to protect the rights of those who
speak truth to power,” Ezekwesili said.

The former minister urged Nigerians to rise in defence of
their democratic rights, stressing that sovereignty belongs to the people and
not to government officials.

“Nigeria’s democracy cannot survive on the silencing of
conscience. Every act of repression against one citizen diminishes the liberty
of all,” she said.

“We must collectively safeguard our right to speak,
assemble, and demand accountability. Our democracy must not become a democracy
without citizens.”