Anthony Okogie, a former Catholic archbishop of Lagos, has said that the country is now fully back to the era of military dictatorship.
The former archbishop said this in a statement on Friday, while describing the leaders of the country as being distant from the citizens.
He also spoke against how court orders are frequently flouted by the current administration, saying “they cannot enforce laws if they cannot obey the law”.
“If the executive disobeys court rulings, and if it intimidates and humiliates the judiciary, then we are back to the era when a military junta made laws and interpreted them without any regard for fundamental human rights,” the cardinal said.
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“In a democracy, those who govern are chosen by the people to represent the people. And if they are to represent the people, they must listen to the people. Not only do true democrats listen, they also are not afraid of dissenting opinions,” he said.
“They do not arrogate to themselves the power to accuse, arrest, prosecute and convict. But can we candidly say we have democrats at the helm of affairs in this country at this point in time?
“How can we claim to live in a democracy when presidential spokespersons tell us the presidency is always right?”
