Five Arrested Over ‘Tinubu Must Go’ T-Shirts in Borno
The Borno State Police Command has arrested and arraigned five men in Maiduguri over T-shirts bearing the inscription “Tinubu Must Go.”
The suspects are Baba Aji Gremami, 44; Mustapha Abba Yemen, 28; Abbacha Mohammed Ali, 32; Adam Umar Gubio, 21; and Abdulhamid Mohammed, 21.
According to a First Information Report issued by the State Criminal Investigation Department, the men allegedly printed and wore the shirts around West End Roundabout in Maiduguri on September 25, with the police alleging that their actions were intended to cause a breach of public peace.
They were charged with criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance, disturbance of public peace and thuggery under Sections 60, 78, 79 and 392 of the Borno State Penal Code. All five pleaded not guilty when they appeared before the Chief Magistrate Court I in Maiduguri.
The court adjourned the case until October 6 for a ruling on their bail application, while the substantive trial was fixed for October 26, 2026.
The arrests have drawn criticism from Amnesty International, which said peaceful political expression should not, in itself, be treated as a criminal offence. The organisation called for the men’s release and for the charges to be dropped.
The Borno Police Command had not publicly responded to the criticism in reports available at the time of publication.
The case comes as political activities increase ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections, bringing renewed attention to the boundaries between political expression, public-order laws and freedom of expression.
