A phrase that started as sporadic cries during the Democracy Day rallies in June 2026 now crystallised into a concerted movement: Tinubu Must Go.
Five men were arrested in Maiduguri, Borno State on Tuesday on charges that they were observed wearing the T-Shirts of the movement but the police on Wednesday rejected the story, stating they were seized on suspicion of being in possession of drugs, reported Daily Trust.
The Borno State Police Command said the arrest and prosecution of the five youngsters were on allegations of possession of drugs and public disturbance, and not for wearing political T-shirts as certain social media platforms are reporting. Politics Politics
The clarification followed outrage and condemnation from groups including Amnesty International and the Borno State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
On social media and conversational platforms, the arrests have been condemned by critics as an arbitrary clampdown on free speech following the assertion that the youths were arrested for just wearing shirts with the message, “Tinubu Must Go”.
However, the spokesman of the Command, ASP Nahum Kenneth Daso, in a press statement released on Wednesday debunked the political narrative, saying that the suspects were caught up in alleged thuggery, instigating public disturbance and possession of illicit substances.
The five suspects named as Baba Aji Gremami, Mustapha Abba Yemen, Abacha Mohammed Ali, Adam Umar Gubio and Abdulhamid Mohammed were detained on September 25, 2026 at about 6pm, police said.
ASP Daso said the suspects were arrested by officers on a routine township patrol around the West-end roundabout after they engaged in conduct judged capable of provoking a public breach of peace.
The cops recovered the things from the suspects in the operation. They include 15 wraps of dried leaves suspected to be Indian hemp, 100 suspected D5 tablets, one shisha pot, a pair of scissors and the two disputed T-Shirts with the “Tinubu Must Go” inscription.
“After the completion of initial police enquiries, preliminary investigations had been done and statements taken and the suspects charged to court,” the police spokeswoman said.
“The Command wishes to state categorically that the Nigeria Police Force is a professional, non-partisan institution and does not discriminate against persons on the basis of political affiliation or viewpoint,” ASP Daso said. Africans&Diaspora
Police said the matter should be brought to a court of law so that the judicial process may follow its natural course.
The matter was stated at Chief Magistrate Court I, Maiduguri, where all the five accused pleaded not guilty.
The detention of the youths has been condemned by many including Amnesty International, former Vise President Atiku Abubakar and the Borno State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The origin of the movement
The question many have asked is how a campaign that began in Kano has found its way to the North Eastern state of Borno, bringing together activists, opposition leaders and ordinary Nigerians. Africans & Diaspora
The correspondent was able to determine that the movement was created by human rights lawyers and activists Abba Hikima Fagge and Hamza Nuhu Dantani.
When our correspondent contacted them, the duo admitted that they were behind the effort, noting that TMG was a non-partisan platform for public education, whose primary objective was to mobilise Nigerians to reject President Bola Tinubu’s bid for a second term in 2027.
It has been observed to have drawn the backing of former Vise President Atiku Abubakar, now of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and has stimulated coalition negotiations among opposition groups.
The movement has sought to convert public fury into political action through internet polls, town halls and grassroots campaigns. Its promoters see TMG as a historic opportunity to unite Nigeria’s fractured opposition under one flag. Politics
The campaign has also been repressed with several detained in Maiduguri for wearing “Tinubu Must Go” shirts.
Why we started the movement – Co-convener
One of the conveners of TMG, Barrister Hamza Nuhu Dantani, said the movement was created out of frustration with what he described as the Tinubu administration’s economic policies, insecurity and what he believes is growing hardship among ordinary Nigerians.
He listed the loss of fuel subsidies, rising petroleum and commodities prices, taxation and insecurity as some of the concerns that inspired the activists behind the movement.
“We were inspired to set up this movement by the way the government and policies of this government are not friendly to the progress of this country,” Dantani stated.
He said the movement was also fuelled by what its organisers saw as a disconnect between promises made by President Bola Tinubu during the 2023 election campaign and the lived reality of Nigerians when he took over the reigns of power. Executive Branch
“We wanted to see the difference. “We wanted to make changes to this administration,” he stated.
“This movement also emanated from the desire to challenge the long dominance of the APC at the federal level, he said.
We can’t continue to stay in a one party system since 2015. Till date APC is dominating this country. So we want to make a difference,” he said.
He, however, said TMG is a platform for ordinary Nigerians and not a tool for getting political jobs or advancing the personal ambitions of its organisers.
“The movement was organised with consideration of the poor masses of this country, not with our personal gain, not with our ambition to have any political office, not with any promises and not with money,” Dantani remarked. Political
The quick expansion of TMG, particularly on social media, is not so much driven by a complex organisational structure but by what Dantani described as widespread popular unhappiness.
There is no special secret. The secret is to be real and truthful. “People are sick of this administration,” he remarked.
“If Nigerians were happy with the trend of the country, the movement wouldn’t have gained momentum,” he said.
He said the movement is not only to protest against the regime but to mobilise Nigerians for political change through the 2027 election.
‘Movement yet to nominate consensus candidate’
Dantani claimed the movement had written to certain important opposition politicians as part of the attempt but said no answer had been received.
“Our original purpose was to serve them with letters therefore we need unity at least. Let them join together and produce one contestant to stand for the opposition,” he said.
But the question of which candidate TMG should support has already revealed an important split within its leadership.
Dantani’s co-convener, Abba Hikima, revealed his backing for Atiku Abubakar after running an online poll in which Atiku was the favourite choice among respondents.
He emphasised that Hikima’s remark was his personal viewpoint and that TMG had not yet officially adopted Atiku.
He insisted that the movement’s position was still that opposition politicians should first unify and put up a common candidate. If they didn’t, Nigerians should be permitted to vote for any of the opposition contenders, he argued. Africans & Diaspora
Dantani’s hesitation to support any single opposition candidate partly stems from his history as a human rights activist, he said.
“I am respectful of the provision in the Constitution. “I respect people’s opinion and I respect people’s views,” he stated.
TMG will not necessarily be an attachment of whichever opposition candidate comes out as a rival to Tinubu, he said.
The major question is who they will back
But while TMG attempts to mobilise Nigerians against President Bola Tinubu, political analyst Professor Murtala Muhammad said the movement has a greater challenge to answer which is: who comes after him?
The professor of political science at North West University, Kano, said the creation of TMG is a reflection of how civil society activists and digital networks are translating public unhappiness into organised political activism ahead of the 2027 elections.
But he said the opposition was split and that could make it hard for TMG to fulfil its aim of creating a single challenger.
“It was ‘Tinubu Must Go’ before. Who’ll come then? Is it Obi, is it Atiku, is it someone else or another party?” Said Muhammad.
The main opposition personalities would probably have trouble deciding on a common candidate because of their competing political objectives, he said. Politics
“All the candidates think that they can win the election without the other party,” he stated.
Therefore, if TMG wants to influence the 2027 election, it must move beyond social media mobilisation and work toward building structures, engaging people and forming bigger coalitions, Muhammad said.
About the Author
