Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Timi Frank, has commended former governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, for condemning the anti-democratic actions of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Naijaonpoint reports that Dickson had kicked against the anti-democratic posture of the present administration, especially concerning Rivers State, shortly after President Tinubu delivered his State of the Nation Address before a joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday.
Dickson slammed Tinubu for not mentioning the state of emergency he imposed on Rivers State and the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara and all members of the State House of Assembly since March 2025.
In a statement issued on Friday, Frank commended Dickson for his patriotism and courage in pointing out the irony of the Democracy Day celebration with fanfare by the executive and legislature, while a state in the country is under military rule.
He described Dickson as a hero and a present-day defender of democracy in the country, for courageously opposing the democratic aberration in Rivers State imposed by Tinubu.
According to him, posterity will remember Dickson for his principled stance in condemning the undemocratic tendencies of Tinubu’s administration.
Frank lamented that the APC and Tinubu’s government believe in impunity, dictatorship, and a one-party state rather than democracy and the rule of law.
He said, “Senator Dickson played the role of a true opposition by speaking the minds of ordinary Nigerians. He did not just make me proud as a citizen of Nigeria; he has made me proud as an Ijaw son.
“He has made me proud as a Bayelsan. He has made me proud as a Niger Delta son, and he has made the entire country proud by speaking truth to power against those destroying our democracy and the country.
“He spoke the truth at a time when so many politicians cutting across party divides in Nigeria have become political cowards and sycophants; he came out boldly to speak the truth.
“Posterity will remember him for his principled stance in condemning the undemocratic tendencies of the Tinubu administration.
“History will never forget him because when Nigerians expected leaders, especially those in government, to speak the truth, he was the only one who confronted the truth and the true position of our democracy.
“What Dickson has done is akin to what lawmakers often do in foreign countries where democracy is being practiced, like the United States and the United Kingdom and even South Africa, where you see lawmakers confronting the president with the truth and expectation of the people.
“It might look like he is alone, but we want to let him know that the Nigerian masses are with him.
“Even if his colleagues across party lines may not support him due to cowardice in his bid to save our democracy, Nigerians and the world are with him, and we are encouraging him to do more by being fearless as usual.”
Frank further asserted that other members of the National Assembly, during the joint session, were aware that Tinubu’s speech was highly laced with propaganda and deceit, but due to sycophancy, they continued to praise the president.
He added, “We know that with what Dickson has done there might be plans to suspend him the way the Senate did to other senators who have stood up for the truth in the past, but let him not be perturbed because God and Nigerians will fight for him.
“For it is better for him to be with God and the people who are in the majority than to take sides with the evil and satanic leaders who are working to destroy democracy in Nigeria.
“It is shameful that the minority caucus in the Senate has been totally compromised because if there was a strong opposition, the minority leader of the Senate would have been supposed to have taken the action that Dickson took”.