President Bola Tinubu on Thursday promised to defend the democratic right of Nigerians to freedom of speech.
In his Democracy Day speech at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, the President told security agents not to hound those criticising his administration’s perceived unpleasant policies.
“Democracy requires a fair degree of tolerance for harsh words and stinging insults,” Tinubu stated before a retinue of lawmakers from the Senate and the House of Representatives.
“Call me names, call me whatever you will, and I will still call upon democracy to defend your right to do so.”
Tinubu urged his political loyalists and lawmakers to value dialogue over dictatorship, persuasion over suppression, and rights over might.