The Movement for the Transformation of Nigeria (MOTiON) has condemned Monday?s attack on protesters in Abuja, describing it as a blatant violation of citizens? constitutional right to peaceful assembly.

Eyewitnesses and media reports indicated that security agents fired live rounds and tear gas, and carried out arrests to disperse the demonstrators, who were reportedly engaging in a lawful protest.

In a statement signed by MOTiON Convener, Hauwa Mustapha, and Co-Convener, Comrade Chris Isiguzo, the group described the action of the security operatives as a ?chilling display of state hostility towards free expression.?

The group noted that security agencies must remember that their duty is to protect citizens exercising their rights, not to suppress them.

It criticized what it described as a ?double standard? in the state?s handling of protests, recalling that demonstrations by police officers and retirees were treated with tolerance because they favoured the same institutions that now employ force against citizens.

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MOTiON accused the government and judiciary of ?weaponizing dissent? by framing protests as attempts to destabilize the state, warning that such narratives encourage repression and erode democratic confidence.

?The judiciary must refuse to rubber-stamp blanket bans on assembly, and the executive must refrain from treating civic space as a political battleground,? the statement said.

The group also urged lawmakers to use their oversight powers to protect the sanctity of citizens? constitutional freedoms.

It called for a public guarantee that peaceful assemblies would no longer be treated as criminal acts, a review of all court injunctions restricting protests, and the adoption of human-rights-compliant protest management protocols by security agencies.

MOTiON reaffirmed its solidarity with Nigerians exercising their right to peaceful protest, stressing that it ?will not stay silent while legitimate dissent is criminalized and voices for justice are violently silenced.? (The Guardian)

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