Human rights activist and lawyer, Dele Farotimi, has said that “God forbid” the president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, whom he referred to as “INEC-select,” to be sworn in as president of Nigeria.
Farotimi stated this while urging Lagosians to participate in the political process by casting ballots for their favorite candidates in the gubernatorial and state house of assembly elections scheduled for March 18, 2023.
He spoke on Wednesday, during his appearance on Arise Television.
Farotimi alleged that criminal gangs had been made legal in Lagos, while expressing concern of the looming danger if Tinubu is sworn in as president.
“Freedom is a choice; Freedom is completely a choice. It is up to the individual to decide whether they want to live or whether they want to exist. I would rather die standing up for what I believe to be the truth than live to a ripe old age devoid of the capacity to speak the truth,” he said.
Farotimi added: “Now, having spoken the truth, it must go beyond that. What is the effect of abandoning the electoral process this Saturday? I must speak directly to the camera and tell you all you would be doing is validating your own enslavement so that, at the end of the day, the entire purpose of them going around to burn market, the entire purpose of them bringing this ethnic hatred; the entire purpose of them attacking you and using threat is to keep you away from exercising from the poll they had once told you was useless; because you have now discovered your vote is not useless, they are afraid if you come out to exercise your franchise, their feeding trough (their pot of soup), they are going to break it.
“But without breaking that pot of soup, how do you free yourself? God forbid that the ‘INEC’s select president’ is sworn in. But imagine that that man is ensconced in Abuja and Lagos is still in their pocket; imagine what will happen to us with criminal gangs already legalised in Lagos State; we might as well give up and know that all of us will go and join mushroom ‘pikins’ (urchins) in his motor park because that is the reality; that is the alternative to you to sit. I am not even saying vote for any particular candidate, but you need to get up, get out of your homes and understand what is at stake – it is your very freedom. So go and vote.”
