Prominent Lagos indigene and 2023 Labour Party governorship candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has described this year’s Democracy Day celebration as pretentious and dubious, arguing that the state of Nigeria’s governance dishonors the ideals for which Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola died.
In a statement shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday, Rhodes-Vivour criticized the current administration, alleging a steady erosion of democratic values and institutions.
“This is not the democracy our heroes fought for”
“Liberal and constitutional democracies hold the promise of protecting individual rights and civil liberties,” he stated. “Beyond their promises of freedom, true democracies also strive to ensure economic prosperity and egalitarianism.”
Rhodes-Vivour insisted that today’s Nigeria fails to meet these fundamental democratic standards. Instead, he said, the country is witnessing increasing oppression of the weak, state capture, and systemic injustice.
He took direct aim at the All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing the ruling party of transforming democracy into a monarchy where citizens are treated as subjects, not stakeholders in governance.
“Duty and honour have given way to sycophancy. We can no longer claim to live in a democracy when dissent is criminalised and the judiciary is deeply compromised.”
He expressed alarm over the use of state institutions to silence opposition, weaponize law enforcement, and concentrate wealth and power in the hands of a few elites.
Rhodes-Vivour also decried the continued insecurity across the country, particularly in the Middle Belt, North-East, and North-West, noting that many communities remain without adequate government protection.
“How can we celebrate democracy when entire villages are left vulnerable, yet political elites enjoy full security convoys? Or when elections are marred by violence, intimidation, and suppression of the people’s will?”
According to the former governorship hopeful, the annual June 12 commemoration should be a moment of serious reflection—not celebration—given Nigeria’s current realities.
“Today’s Democracy Day celebration is not only pretentious but also dubious,” he said. “This is not the democracy Chief MKO Abiola died for, nor the one our elders envisioned.”
“This political experiment is failing—and that failure is being accelerated by the ruling party’s utter disregard for the rule of law and its parasitic appetite to loot public resources at the expense of the people.”
