Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
Concerned lawyers across Nigeria have raised the alarm over a wave of threats, intimidation and political violence targeting citizens perceived to be supporting opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections, warning that the conduct of public officials and their supporters is eroding confidence in the electoral process before a single ballot is cast.
The warnings, published on Saturday by Vanguard and Opinion Nigeria, follow a series of incidents across the country. In Edo State, the Chairman of Esan West Local Government Area reportedly threatened that any hotel hosting a meeting of the Nigeria Democratic Congress would be demolished if it hosted any party other than the All Progressives Congress. The same official reportedly visited Ekpoma motor park and ordered that commercial drivers wearing caps belonging to other parties be barred from entering. In Abuja, a council chairman told residents unwilling to support the APC to relocate from the Federal Capital Territory. In Borno State, a commissioner reportedly threatened that anyone opposing the ruling party would be flogged. Across several states, political thugs have disrupted gatherings, attacked participants and destroyed property.
The incidents are not isolated. The African Democratic Congress this month presented a memorandum documenting attacks on opposition members across at least nine states between July 2025 and September 2026, including the killing of a party member in Rivers State, attacks on the ADC secretariat in Benin City, and the disruption of an opposition gathering in Enugu. The party accused security agencies of failing to investigate and prosecute perpetrators despite documented evidence.
Senior Advocate of Nigeria Kenneth C. Ahia said the reported actions violate Sections 34, 40, 41 and 42 of the Constitution, which protect the dignity of the person, the rights of assembly, association and movement, and freedom from discrimination on account of political opinion. “An election remains meaningful only when citizens can campaign, speak and vote without fear,” Ahia said. “When officials threaten those freedoms, they discourage participation and erode confidence in the result before a single ballot is cast.” He called for every reported threat to be investigated fairly and for any official found to have abused public power to face appropriate consequences. “Those in power must also remember that power is transient. Years ago, the PDP held sway across the country and acted with impunity; today it is the APC. No party holds power forever, and there is always a time for reckoning.”
Another SAN, Dayo Akinlaja, described the threats as “highly unconstitutional, illegal, unfortunate and disturbing,” saying they pointed to a democracy that was degenerating rather than improving. “Issues, not threats, should define electioneering campaigns,” he said. “Sadly, issues are relegated to the background. Fear mongering is elevated in their place. The situation is tragic, and that is even an understatement.”
Abuja-based senior lawyer Nkereuwem Akpan said the threats amounted to electoral offences under the Electoral Act 2026. He drew a historical parallel, recalling that Nigeria had offered voters choices under military rule and warning that the ruling party’s conduct risked repeating the mistakes that destroyed the PDP. “Any attempt, before, during, or after the elections, to infringe on this right to choose is clearly unconstitutional and actionable in the law courts,” he said. “In other jurisdictions, the police would have arrested, prosecuted and jailed anyone engaged in this conduct, but they won’t, because orders will come from Abuja to truncate the case.”
Chief Chukwuma Nwachukwu said “doomsday beckons” if political actors failed to comply with the law, stressing that no individual or government official was above the Constitution. He urged the Independent National Electoral Commission to read the riot act to political office holders regardless of party affiliation and to act against inflammatory rhetoric before it destabilises the elections. Evans Ufeli said political intimidation could turn elections from a contest of ideas into “a marketplace of fear,” warning that threats intended to influence voting or punish opposition supporters could have legal consequences under the Electoral Act 2026. Femi Aborisade said continued intimidation could constrict Nigeria’s democratic space and discourage citizens from openly participating in political activities. “If this pattern continues unchecked, it could create an atmosphere of fear in which citizens become reluctant to participate openly in political activities or express their genuine preferences. That would have serious consequences for the credibility of the electoral process,” he said.
The alarm comes amid a broader climate of political tension ahead of the 2027 general elections, scheduled for January 16, with the governorship and state assembly elections following on February 6. The NDC has accused the APC and the Benue State Government of sending thugs to disrupt Peter Obi’s convoy on the Makurdi–Gboko highway, an allegation the state government denied. In Delta State, suspected thugs disrupted a mobilisation rally involving Obi’s supporters. In Osun State, the killing of an Accord Party chieftain at a motor park intensified a long-running dispute over the leadership of the National Union of Road Transport Workers. The pattern of violence has prompted Amnesty International to call for investigations and has drawn demands from opposition parties for security agencies to act impartially.
The lawyers’ intervention underscores a central question of the 2027 campaign: whether Nigerians will be able to exercise their political choices freely, without fear of reprisal. The Constitution guarantees the right to associate, assemble and express political preferences, and the Electoral Act 2026 prescribes penalties for electoral offences including intimidation and coercion. But as election law expert Emeka Nwosu noted, the challenge is not the absence of laws but inconsistent enforcement. He called for proper evidence preservation, specialised investigators, dedicated prosecutors and equal application of the law regardless of the status of the alleged offender.
For the concerned lawyers, the message to political actors is unambiguous. As Ahia put it, leaders of all parties should make clear that votes must be won by persuasion and performance, never by coercion. The 2027 elections must allow Nigerians to freely exercise their political choices without threats, intimidation or coercion. Whether that standard is met will depend not only on the conduct of political actors but on the willingness of INEC, the police and other institutions to enforce the law without fear or favour. As the campaign intensifies, the lawyers have placed their warning on the record, and the coming months will determine whether it is heeded or ignored.
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