On November 20, 2014, lawmakers, “Honourables”, elected members of the House of Representatives, were tear-gassed and blocked by the police from entering the National Assembly. They were going to consider the letter from President Goodluck Jonathan that day, bordering on approval to extend the emergency rule in the three states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa. Guess what happened, several of the Honourables scaled the fence to gain access to the National Assembly Complex. Why? Because they had important business to discuss and their denial of access infringed their right to freedom of expression.
The protesters who were alleged to have pulled the gate of the National Assembly today to force their way in after being stopped by the security agents from gaining access, if it truly happened, had justification. They had important life-threatening business to discuss there. Why shutting them out? Are they not citizens of Nigeria? Why denying them access to the National Assembly to register their protest to the powers? The denial itself is unconstitutional. It is a curtailment of their rights to freedom of expression.
Tope Temokun
August 3, 2023.