The senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the National Assembly, Ireti Kingibe, has criticised the curfew imposed by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, ahead of Saturday’s Area Council elections.
Wike had, in a special broadcast on Thursday, declared Friday a work-free day in the nation’s capital and announced a restriction on human and vehicular movement across the FCT from 8 p.m. on Friday to 6 p.m. on Saturday to ensure a peaceful poll.
Reacting in a statement issued on Friday by her Special Assistant on Media, Matilda Duncan, Kingibe described the minister’s directive as “authoritarian, ill-considered, and unacceptable in a democratic society.”
She argued that imposing a sweeping curfew without broad consultation with critical stakeholders amounts to “a direct affront to democratic governance and the constitutional rights of residents.”
“The people of the FCT are not subjects under a dictatorship; they are citizens of a democratic republic. Any far-reaching restriction on their movement and livelihoods must be backed by compelling evidence, subjected to scrutiny, and implemented with transparency,” she said.
While acknowledging the importance of maintaining law and order, the senator cautioned against using security concerns as a blanket justification for executive overreach. She warned that the restriction could inflict economic hardship on small business owners, workers, and families who rely on daily income for survival.
According to Kingibe, there are no prevailing security threats in the FCT to justify such a measure, noting that the exercise in question involves only Area Council elections. She maintained that decisions of such magnitude should follow due process and stakeholder engagement.
The senator called on Wike to immediately review and suspend the curfew, insisting that the rights, freedoms, and economic wellbeing of FCT residents “must never be compromised by arbitrary or draconian executive action.”
