Amnesty International has urged President Bola Tinubu's administration to avoid threatening Nigerians who plan to protest against the prevailing hardship and hunger in the country. The global human rights organization emphasized that it is unlawful to threaten peaceful protesters, noting that Nigerians have a constitutional right to protest.

Reports indicate that some youths are organizing a nationwide protest from August 1 to 15 to voice their discontent with the rising cost of living and economic challenges. In response, Tinubu's media aide, Dada Olusegun, issued a stern warning to potential protesters, promising they would face strong resistance if they proceed with their plans.

In a post on X, Olusegun stated that those who elected Tinubu would fiercely oppose the protest. "Those who want to burn the country down under whatever guise will meet the strongest resistance of their lives. Not from security agencies, but from the silent majority that gave their mandate to President Bola Tinubu for four years in the first instance. We are waiting," he tweeted.

Amnesty International condemned these threats, asserting that they constitute a clear attack on the freedom of assembly, a right enshrined in both international law and Nigeria's 1999 Constitution. "Threatening peaceful protesters is unlawful. It is a clear attack on freedom of assembly — which is guaranteed by international law and Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution. Nigerians must not be denied the constitutionally and internationally guaranteed right to peaceful protest through veiled threats of violence and false insinuations," the organization stated.