Thirty-two years after Nigeria's historic June 12, 1993, presidential election—widely regarded as the freest and fairest in the country’s history—the nation remains sharply divided on whether its democratic journey has yielded meaningful progress.
This year’s Democracy Day, observed on June 12 to commemorate the annulled victory of Chief MKO Abiola, passed with little fanfare. While President Bola Ahmed Tinubu delivered an address extolling the growth of democracy since 1999, many Nigerians expressed disappointment, frustration, and outright apathy amid growing disillusionment with the state of the nation.
Tinubu’s Assurances Met with Scepticism
Speaking before a joint sitting of the National Assembly, President Tinubu attempted to reassure the country of his democratic credentials. He defended his government against allegations of authoritarianism and ambitions for a one-party state.
“Year by year, election after election, every time we debate instead of battle, discuss instead of fight, and argue instead of destroying, we preserve the institutions of democracy,” the President said. “To those who ring the alarm that the APC is intent on a one-party state, I offer you a most personal promise: your alarm is in error.”
While insisting that his administration was committed to democratic pluralism, Tinubu added, “I have never attempted to alter any political party’s registration with INEC. We must embrace the diversity of our political parties, not eliminate it.”
Yet, his words did little to soothe a sceptical public. Across most states, the day was marked neither by celebration nor protest. With the exception of a planned but largely muted demonstration by the Take It Back movement, Nigerians went about their daily lives, largely indifferent to the public holiday.
Opposition Voices Sound the Alarm
Opposition leaders and civil society figures used the occasion to critique what they described as a backslide into authoritarianism and economic mismanagement.
Adebayo Adewole, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP)—the same platform on which Abiola ran—described the commemorations as a hollow ritual.
“As long as poverty, hunger, and injustice persist, June 12 celebrations are meaningless,” he said. “Politicians today are more concerned with winning elections than fulfilling promises.”
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who was a prominent member of the SDP in 1993, offered a damning assessment.
“Thirty-two years ago, Nigeria stood on the cusp of greatness,” Atiku said. “But today, a creeping one-party dictatorship is dismantling the democratic promise we bled for. Opposition voices are being erased, national institutions hijacked, and governance replaced by conquest.”
He condemned what he called a systematic effort to entrench power, citing the awarding of contracts to presidential associates and the renaming of national institutions in Tinubu’s honour as evidence of a growing cult of personality.
“This government represents the lowest ebb in our democratic journey,” he declared.
Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential flagbearer, echoed similar concerns. He questioned whether Nigeria still qualified as a democracy.
“In two years, we’ve gone from rigged elections to worsening poverty and collapsing services,” Obi lamented. “Democracy has been replaced by propaganda, lies, and gaslighting. Electoral rules are flouted, and the people’s will is undermined.”
PDP: Nigeria Under “State Capture”
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) issued a scathing statement, accusing the APC-led federal government of executing a systematic state capture by compromising key institutions, including the judiciary, electoral commission, and legislature.
“The APC is engaged in a coordinated effort to dismantle democratic checks and balances,” said PDP spokesperson Debo Ologunagba. “The National Assembly has become a rubber stamp, and judicial integrity is being eroded by politically compromised officers.”
Rivers State Controversy Highlights Democratic Deficit
The controversy surrounding the suspension of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and the entire State House of Assembly by presidential order in March 2025 further underscored concerns over democratic backsliding.
Despite the solemnity of the day, President Tinubu made no mention of reinstating the ousted elected officials, a silence that drew sharp rebuke from Senator Seriake Dickson, former Bayelsa State Governor.
“Today, Democracy Day, was the right moment to announce the restoration of democratic rule in Rivers State,” Dickson said. “Instead, we were subjected to the reading of a presidential letter making fresh appointments into democratic institutions. It’s an affront to everything June 12 stands for.”
He described the emergency rule imposed on Rivers as “a forceful takeover,” warning that the country was straying dangerously from the democratic path.
A resident of the state, Boroh Depriye, captured the popular mood. “They are practising dictatorship, not democracy. So what exactly are we celebrating?”
A Day of Reflection, Not Celebration
While President Tinubu sought to position his administration as a continuation of the democratic struggle symbolised by June 12, many Nigerians saw a disconnect between his words and their lived reality—marked by deepening economic hardship, rising authoritarianism, and worsening public trust in state institutions.
Instead of a celebration, the day became a somber reminder of dashed hopes, fading ideals, and the growing perception that democracy in Nigeria is under siege.
As opposition leaders warned of a crossroads between democratic renewal and descent into despotism, the mood on the streets told its own story: one of indifference, weariness, and quiet resistance.
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