Protesters in parts of Northern Nigeria have taken to the streets chanting “Tinubu Must Go,” demanding that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu abandon any bid for re-election in the 2027 general elections.
A video shared on captured the growing anti-Tinubu sentiment, showing demonstrators openly rejecting the president’s continued stay in office. The post described the action as occurring ahead of the 2027 polls.
The chants form part of a coordinated “Tinubu Must Go” (TMG) movement founded by human rights lawyers and activists Abba Hikima Fagge and Hamza Nuhu Dantani. The group describes itself as a non-partisan platform aimed at public enlightenment and mobilising Nigerians to reject Tinubu’s second-term ambition. Conveners cite the administration’s economic policies, rising hardship, insecurity and unfulfilled campaign promises as their main motivations.
On Sunday, October 11, 2026, the movement’s plans for a meeting in Kano State ran into resistance. Police operatives reportedly deployed more than 10 Mobile Police vehicles to barricade a privately hired event centre, preventing members from accessing the venue.
Abba Hikima, one of the conveners, condemned the action in a live video, saying the group had gathered to exercise their fundamental rights to free association and to educate themselves on the need to end the current administration. He described the blockade as further justification for the “Tinubu Must Go” slogan and vowed that the movement would continue organising meetings and demonstrations.
Kano State Commissioner of Police Ibrahim Adamu Bakori later explained that the intervention was driven by concerns for the safety of participants and residents. He said the organisers had not given prior notice of a gathering expected to draw hundreds of people, which would have allowed the police to make adequate security arrangements. Bakori acknowledged citizens’ right to assemble but stressed the need for coordination with security agencies.
The “Tinubu Must Go” slogan first gained traction during Democracy Day protests in June 2026 and has since spread across northern states. Earlier incidents include the arrest of five men in Maiduguri, Borno State, over T-shirts bearing the inscription (police later linked the arrests to alleged drug possession and breach of public peace), as well as demonstrations in Yobe and other locations.
Amnesty International has condemned the Kano blockade as an “unlawful and outrageous” violation of the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of association.
As political temperatures rise ahead of the 2027 elections, the movement continues to attract attention from opposition figures and ordinary citizens frustrated by economic conditions. Authorities have repeatedly urged political actors to operate within the bounds of the law.
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