Criticism Is Not a Crime
Reclaiming the Right to
Hold Power Accountable in Nigeria
John Onyeukwu
(Published in my Policy & Reform Column of Business am Newspaper on Monday August 11, 2025). Page 6 in the attached.
One of the earliest lessons we were taught in law school was that the law is not a tool for silence, but a shield for freedom. That government exists at the mercy of the people, not the other way around. But in today’s Nigeria, this truth is being buried beneath a rising tide of deliberate gaslighting. Those who speak out against injustice, hardship, or official incompetence are no longer just dismissed they are branded as unpatriotic.
The self-evident truth is that there is nothing patriotic about silence in the face of suffering.
In recent years, a sinister narrative has taken root. Citizens who express dissent are accused of “talking Nigeria down.” Social commentators are told they “hate the country.” Protesters are called “saboteurs.” Critics of bad policy are branded “enemies of progress.” And worst of all, those who demand accountability are met with the ultimate insult: “You are not patriotic.”
This distortion of patriotism is as dangerous as it is dishonest. It deliberately twists love for country into silence, and loyalty into servitude. But true patriotism is not blind obedience; it is fierce loyalty to the truth, even when the truth is uncomfortable.
We must ask: what is a patriot, if not someone who loves their country enough to want it to be better? Socrates, accused of corrupting the youth of Athens for asking too many questions, insisted that an unexamined life is not worth living. Likewise, an unexamined nation cannot grow. The citizen who refuses to speak up in the face of injustice is not preserving peace, they are enabling decay. In contrast, the citizen who dares to demand more of their leaders is enacting a higher form of loyalty, the kind that wants the country to rise, not stagnate in delusion.
Nowhere is this misuse of patriotism more visible than in the selective application of Section 24 of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024. Originally designed to combat genuine cyber threats, such as fraud, identity theft, and digital harassment, this provision has increasingly been used as a political weapon.
Section 24 criminalizes the sending of messages deemed “grossly offensive,” “obscene,” “lewd,” “indecent,” or causing “annoyance,” “inconvenience,” or “ill will.” These terms remain alarmingly vague, even after the 2024 amendment, creating dangerous room for arbitrary interpretation.
In practice, this law has morphed into a convenient silencing tool for those in power. It is used not to address real cybercrime, but to suppress political criticism. From journalists to students, from whistleblowers to civic actors, many Nigerians have been arrested or detained for online comments that, by any democratic standard, should fall under protected speech.
Take the case of Daniel Ojukwu, a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), arrested in 2023 over a report on procurement irregularities. Charged under Section 24, he was detained for days without formal charges. These are not anomalies; they are examples of how the law has been distorted to punish dissent. This clashes directly with Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression, and it violates international standards such as Article 19 of the ICCPR and Article 9 of the ACHPR, as affirmed by the ECOWAS Court of Justice in SERAP v. Nigeria (ECW/CCJ/JUD/16/20). Yet despite that 2022 judgment, enforcement patterns on the ground remain unchanged.
The political consequence is the erosion of democratic space. When citizens begin to self-censor out of fear, when young people on social media hesitate to question authority, the very foundation of representative governance is at risk. A society that cannot tolerate dissent cannot evolve.
This is not just a legal or political issue; it is also an economic one. A government that punishes feedback cannot benefit from innovation. An economy that fears transparency cannot attract trust. Our development struggles are tied not just to global headwinds, but to a culture of suppression and selective listening. Leaders insulated from critique become blind to failure.
Let us not forget the role of fellow citizens who weaponize patriotism against their neighbors. These are those who defend poor governance with phrases like, “At least he’s better than the last one,” or “Give them time,” or “You don’t love Nigeria if you complain.” But this is not civic maturity; it is a shallow understanding of democracy.
Patriotism does not mean keeping quiet while bad roads kill our loved ones, while inflation crushes families, or while politicians live in obscene luxury as the people suffer. It does not mean watching hospitals decay, young people lose hope, or security fail while clapping for leaders based on party or tribe.
To speak out is to believe that Nigeria deserves better, that Nigerians deserve better. That is not hatred. That is hope wrapped in courage.
To those trying to shut others up: stop confusing loyalty to government with loyalty to country. The two are not the same. In fact, they are often in direct opposition, especially when government abandons the people it swore to serve.
Loyalty to country means holding leaders accountable, not worshipping them. It means loving Nigeria enough to challenge those mismanaging its future. It means saying, “This is not good enough” and demanding better. A loyal citizen does not shield power from scrutiny; they ensure that power serves the people.
To safeguard the 2027 elections and Nigeria’s democratic credibility, Section 24 must be urgently reformed. Its language should be tightened, its scope limited to genuine cyber threats, and its enforcement aligned with both constitutional guarantees and Nigeria’s international obligations.
But beyond legal reform, we need a shift in political culture. Law enforcement must exercise restraint. The judiciary must stand as a bulwark of rights. Civil society must remain vigilant. And most importantly, citizens must keep speaking, knowing that democracy thrives not on silence but on accountability.
Patriotism is not silence in the face of hardship; it is the refusal to normalize it. It is the insistence that poverty should not be permanent, that suffering should not be routine, and that bad governance should never be excused as destiny. It is the unyielding belief that Nigeria can and must be better, and that silence only prolongs the pain. Because silence helps no one, but a voice, spoken with courage, just might save a nation.
Stockholm
Sweden
People’s Planet
12th, August, 2025
Once again it’s Nigeria we’re talking about - and if the late Yusuf Maitama Sule were with us today he would probably still be saying what he says here and we would probably be nodding our heads in agreement that so much has changed and like everywhere else, so much still remains the same.
A good 208 (two-hundred-and-eight) years after the then (20) twenty-year-old Alexander Pope penned An Essay in Criticism, T.S. Eliot, one of his poetic descendants, wrote that Criticism is as inevitable as breathing, and approximately 106 ( one-hundred-and-six) years later, John Onyeukwu of Nigeria not attending to the literary but grieving about the sorry state of affairs in his Nigeria titled his protest essay “Criticism is not a crime” in which he appeals to the patriotic sentiments of his dear countrymen and women. In this too he has allies and comrades in arms such as Auwal Musa Rafsanjani and Professor Jibrin Ibrahim.
There’s nothing to disagree about contents or the tone apart from (not being there in Nigeria) the feeling that it’s inexplicable and surely an exaggeration and probably only in fiction and in Nollywood that you could possibly hear the shuffering and shmiling say,” You don’t love Nigeria, if you complain”
I’m sure that Dr Oohay would disagree about this terrible kind of ism being applied to Nigeria, will readily agree with the view that Nigeria is not anywhere near to or in danger of descending into totalitarianism
For now, this much can be said : On the whole, there’s a free press and there’s freedom of speech in Nigeria .The amended law on cybercrime and the alleged, perverted interpretations of sections of the law used to detain investigative journalist Daniel Ojukwu are probably laws that will remain in the Nigeria Law Books/ Criminal Code waiting to be amended. Thankfully, Daniel Ojukwu ‘s case is nothing half as bad as the bad old days and what happened to Dele Giwa….
18 (eighteen) years later Wole Soyinka delivered The Reith Lectures
What’s needed most of all is a truly independent judiciary, the integrity and unwavering commitment of the Nigerian Bar Association to, strictly speaking, The Rule of Law….
Ostensibly, passive resistance is not John Onyeukwu’s modus operandi, and although I don’t know how many disciples he has, I thank God that to date he doesn’t strike me as the kind of patriotic, radical or revolutionary Nigerian who would be glad to promote or incite the violent overthrow of the incumbent government, chanting along with Mutabaruka, Any Which Way Freedom Must Come… because (a) For Nigeria, freedom, that old Negro Spiritual oh Freedom was attained way back, on the 1st of October 1960, and (b) Nigeria is a democracy, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu ( JAGABAN) Nigeria’s current president won a landslide victory just two years ago and the people of Nigeria have the freedom to elect John Onyeukwu as their next president in 2028 if he’s willing or courageous enough to take the bull by the horns knowing as he does the true-ism in the clear message of this little, albeit violent illustration which could be titled NEPA ( Never Expect Power Always)
But back to reality, the fact is that sometimes, criticism can be a crime. Criminal criticism. There was the fatwa passed on Salman Rushdie’s head and I don’t remember exactly who - it could have been V.S. Naipaul of course, who described it as “an extreme form of literary criticism”. There are all kinds of historical antecedents to that sort of punishment - John the Baptist's head being presented on a platter to Salome, a few years later the crucifixion of Jesus, Giordano Bruno burned at the stake in 1600, not to mention all the legal codes/babble that circumscribe a man’s freedom to think and to express his thoughts without abruption - there’s heresy, blasphemy, treason, libel, slander, and if indeed criticism is not a crime, then try this for size, as a matter of fact yesterday I was thinking about the latter ( libel & slander) when I read Femi Fani-Kayode’s lampooning of our dear Yoruba sister which he kickstarted with “Kemi Badenoch, I noticed that a river of saliva was dripping out of the corner of your mouth when you were giving your 'Essex girl' interview to a British TV station.”
You too can well imagine this kind of knee-jerk reaction, coming from the Diaspora likes of Lady Shakara, Kemi Badenoch herself, with a Na wah O disdainfully followed by “oh these Nigerians !”
In Saro Krio, Shakara is CHAKRA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS7RI06e5D0
Chief Cornelius,
I have read your reflection on my op-ed with both appreciation and interest. Appreciation, because when ideas are engaged, they live beyond the page; interest, because your critique touches on the very fault lines I have long argued Nigeria must address.
Where I must respectfully differ is in your suggestion that my assertion that Nigerians are sometimes told “you don’t love Nigeria if you complain”, is exaggerated, a notion fit for Nollywood. I wish it were so. But in truth, I have heard those words, sometimes outright, sometimes implied, often enough to know they are real. They do not always come with handcuffs or jail cells, but they carry a weight of social intimidation, political hostility, and, in some cases, legal harassment. That too narrows the space for honest civic engagement.
I agree with you: Nigeria is not in the grip of totalitarianism. We have a measure of press freedom and space for dissent. But the presence of liberty in law does not mean liberty is fully secure in practice. Section 24 of the Cybercrime Act, with its vague and subjective language, remains open to abuse. The Daniel Ojukwu case is instructive, not as an echo of the tragic fate of Dele Giwa, but as a reminder that legal tools meant for genuine cybercrime can be turned against legitimate criticism.
You rightly note that criticism can, in certain contexts, become criminal, when it crosses into defamation, incitement, or threats. That is not my quarrel. My concern is with the use of “offense,” “annoyance,” or “ill will” as elastic categories to silence dissent. That is where regulation blurs into repression, and democracy begins to weaken.
On the need for a truly independent judiciary and a Nigerian Bar Association steadfast in defending the Rule of Law, we are in complete agreement. I would only add that the defense of liberty is not the duty of courts and lawyers alone. It is also the work of citizens who refuse to internalize the idea that dissent is disloyalty.
Patriotism is not about shielding those in power from scrutiny, it is about ensuring power serves the people. And if we wait until criticism is banned outright before defending it, we will find the defense far more difficult to mount. The time to insist that criticism is not a crime is while we still have the freedom to say so.
Respectfully,
John
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/usaafricadialogue/1b06ede7-0512-46d3-a16a-d52db31688c6n%40googlegroups.com.
Stockholm
Sweden
Peoples’ Planet
13/8/2025
John Onyeukwu,
Rest assured that I fully agree with all that’s stated in your original article Criticism is not a crime and in this your brief reply.
Nor is it difficult to imagine some Zombie Nigerians, especially the die-hard sycophants, ethnic & party loyalists, assorted & associate beneficiaries, beholden to the government of the day, marinated in the idea ”How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child!” having vowed / taken an oath on the juju, to not be ungrateful , to not bite the hand that's feeding them, therefore being prone to saying “you don’t love Nigeria / you’re being unpatriotic if you complain”.
Criticism, legitimate criticism may not be a crime but e.g. Kemi Badenoch’s criticism of Nigeria has drawn a lot of bad blood and she’s taking a lot of flak for that, some good people are even accusing her of treason - a crime which in some countries carries the death penalty - except that fortunately for Kemi , Wimbledon is not within the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Penal Code or the long arm of Nigerian Law - I guess that if she was still a Nigerian citizen , Nigerian law enforcement could have contemplated bringing her to justice, bringing her back to face the music in pretty much the same way that they tried to bring back Umaru Dikko
Re - What you wrote earlier : “Section 24 criminalizes the sending of messages deemed “grossly offensive,” “obscene,” “lewd,” “indecent,” or causing “annoyance,” “inconvenience,” or “ill will.” “
Doesn’t Femi Fani-Kayode’s take down of Kemi fall foul of Section 24 ?
Sadly, for her own political survival in Merry England, Kemi ( rimes with Femi) cannot afford to take Femi to court and to have her name dragged in the mud and all that excreta
I visited Moses Ochonu on Facebook today and was surprised to hear him hollering Free Omoyele Sowore now!!!
M
Wondering if Omoyele has fallen foul of Section 24 or some other section?Stockholm
Sweden
Peoples’ Planet
14th August, 2025
Dear John Onyeukwu,
I notice that you have neatly side-stepped any suggestion of you running for president in 2027, perhaps in tune with what the sages say about humility. At the same time it’s good to note that you are putting some of your considerable talents at work for the grand idea known as Nigeria. In my view you could do a lot better as President, with your cabinet on board with your vision, and your overseeing your cabinet of national competence etc. keeping an eye on them so that none of them steps out of line, overseeing them, perish the thought that any of them would have the gumption to think or say,” boss, it’s so good that we’re in this crime together” - their notion of ”collective responsibility”, and I’m sure that you’d also be keeping an eye on the independence of the judiciary , not a chance of any of them winding up in your back pocket, as happens in some of our not so democratic countries where the judiciary is usually in Mr. President's back pocket from which location they usually do Mr President's bidding and about their pious, upright public utterances, tell Mr. President, “ Astagfirulah, boss, as you know, I was only kidding “
Of course we’re on the same side, on the side of anti-corruption, progress, major investments in education, agriculture, science and technology, the end of impunity, the true beginnings of the rule of law, human rights, human dignity, the end of terrorism, and that’s why when I think of some of the implications of all of the aforementioned , I’d like to qualify what I said about fully agreeing with the contents of your last two submissions. To begin with I’m sure that you’ll agree, the idea that “you don’t love Nigeria and you’re being unpatriotic if you complain” is also putting to the test JFK’s famous challenge perhaps especially posed to Nigeria's intelligentsia : ”Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country."
As a policy analyst the question for you is how does the ongoing, pernicious brain-drain from Nigeria measure up to that challenge? Where is the love ? As a pertinent example let's take the exodus of over 6, 500 Nigerian medical doctors to the UK, in the period 2019 -2024
(In 2003 there were only 68 ( sixty eight) doctors, 4 (four) dentists , and 1 ( one / a) psychiatrist ( Dr .Nahim) working in Sierra Leone, which then had a population of 5 (five) million souls
That same year ( 2003) there were over 23,000 medical doctors serving in Algeria….)
It should be interesting to follow a nationalist such as Femi Fani-Kayode’s deliberations on these matters….
The past twenty years or so, apart from periodic outbursts from Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah I have not heard the same kind of hue and cry - the same kind of public outcry coming from the pulpits of these famous, very influential three, each with a very large following :
Bishop David Oyedepo, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, and Pastor William Folorunsho Kumuyi who at the forefront of any moral crusade against corruption, together with other prominent Nigerian fishers of men , would surely work wonders, have a huge impact. But I have only been listening to them sporadically, and perhaps they have been preaching against corruption when I wasn’t listening, in addition to exhorting their flocks, “ Seek first the kingdom of God !”
#Jerónimo Maya: "Bulerias" in Solera Flamenca
Many Thanks .
Meanwhile, President Tinubu is sitting comfortably in the saddle. The recently concluded $346 Million arms deal with Trump means that he must be in Trump’s good books, and the deal should have put terrorists, insurgents, separatist miscreants and potential secessionists on notice that the Nigerian military will soon be fully equipped to ruthlessly put down any kind of trouble. In passing we could also note increased Nigeria - Israel security cooperation in the counter-terrorism areas.
The other fact is that we are mostly in the same situation covered by Old Major’s Speech in Animal Farm - so that in describing Nigeria’s current situation we have Professor Jibrin Ibrahim the unabashed Marxist more or less quoting Old Major verbatim when he says that if the present trend continues, "our lives would become nasty, brutish and short."
A few days ago, a friend observed that “The greatest blessing is Trump winning the election. He is uniting the whole of Africa” and added, “Thousands of African Americans are returning to Africa…”
Indeed Trump has declared a war on woke, and the fact is that on the whole Africa South of the Sahara is already united in the kinds of problems that bedevil the continent South of the Sahara; there are those who espouse wokeism, advocate socialism as the solution of Africa's problems and see glimmers of hope coming from the hitherto exemplary Ibrahim Traore who currently has a large following in Africa and Diaspora.
The question is when is such a leader type going to emerge from the sleeping giant known as Nigeria?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9suCPWKWwLY
Paco de Amparo & Diego Amaya & Lúa: Bulerias de Morón en Solera Flamenca
Dear Chief Cornelius,
I read your latest reflections with gratitude. Your words remind me that criticism, when offered in good faith, is not opposition but dialogue. You tease me about sidestepping the suggestion of running for president in 2027; perhaps humility, perhaps prudence (realizing the impossibility of such - as my family and friends might even suggest that it is a joke taken too far). But you also touch on themes that go to the heart of our national dilemma: patriotism, brain drain, and the muted voice of our moral leaders. Allow me to respond.
First, on the claim that Nigerians are told “you don’t love Nigeria if you complain.” You suggest this sentiment tests the JFK challenge, “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” I agree the question of responsibility must be asked of all citizens. But patriotism cannot be reduced to silence in the face of failure. Speaking out is not an abdication of duty, it is part of what we do for our country. A citizen who points out corruption or injustice is not refusing service to the nation; they are rendering it.
Second, the brain drain. You ask how 6,500 Nigerian doctors leaving for the UK between 2019–2024 squares with patriotism. I would argue it reflects not a lack of love for country but a collapse of state responsibility. Professionals leave when systems fail to value them, protect them, or provide conditions for growth. In 2003, Sierra Leone had barely 70 doctors, Algeria 23,000. The disparity you highlight reminds us that human capital is not a natural accident; it is the outcome of policy. If we continue to underfund health, underpay doctors, and overlook merit, we should not be surprised that talent migrates. The answer is not to shame those who leave, but to build a Nigeria worth staying for.
Third, the silence of the pulpits. I share your concern. Faith leaders like Bishop Oyedepo, Pastor Adeboye, and Pastor Kumuyi command immense followings. Their voices, if mobilized against corruption and impunity, could reshape public culture. Some have spoken, but often too softly, too sporadically. As you note, Bishop Kukah has been more consistent in holding power accountable. In a nation where religion wields such moral influence, silence on corruption is a political choice, and one we can ill afford.
You and I agree on the fundamentals: we stand for anti-corruption, for the rule of law, for investments in education, agriculture, science and technology, and for human dignity. Where we must go further is to insist that patriotism must be honest, not cosmetic. Love for Nigeria cannot mean turning a blind eye, nor can it mean shaming those who seek better lives abroad. It must mean demanding that our institutions, political, judicial, and moral, serve the people with integrity.
That is where my voice lies. Not in chants of revolution, not in silence, but in the stubborn insistence that criticism is not a crime and neither is the demand that Nigeria be better than it is today.
(Permit me to share this on a WhatsApp platform, where this conversation sometimes gets heated)
Respectfully,
John
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/usaafricadialogue/632ec0bf-d783-49f3-be13-883f5929b688n%40googlegroups.com.
Stockholm
Sweden
Peoples’ Planet
(One man, one vote )
17th August, 2025
Dear John Onyeukwu 👍
Glad to know that you’re safely back from Togo!
The nearest I’ve been to Togo was Aflao where we in Ghana ( 1970- 71) used to go to change our dollars $$$ (Black-market) .
”We” : me - and assorted Americans, Canadians and Australians…
From back then to now I can make the following observations: On the whole Ghanaians are anti-kalabule and perhaps because of Kwame Nkrumah continue to be more ideological than Nigerians who are still mainly only crying and grinding away at this single issue known as corruption. So at election time in Nigeria, that’s what di people want to hear, they want to hear the wannabe leader/ commander-in-thief swear “ I’m gonna wipe out corruption !”
As you’ve already explained, “No reform will stick if people are too broken to believe.”
Seems to me that there’s more ideology in Fela than in a paper tiger like Omoyele Sowore and all the current batch of opposition politicians put together. On the other hand, in the Wild West ideology is a bad word.
Yes indeed, Nigeria can do much better !
True: There's an almost universal agreement about what’s wrong with Nigeria, perhaps, to the extent that we are not in need of any updates or posthumous editions of the late great Chinua Achebe’s seminal The Trouble With Nigeria , published in 1983 when I was in my neck of that extraordinary country, stationed at its southernmost tip - in Bakana, observing everything first hand - culture and social life, beautiful, politics, especially the economics going with the politics, some of it as rotten as long unburied corpses and stinking like injustice. When it comes to the credibility of the reporting, actually being there - in Nigeria makes the difference - in perception. Back then , in my case, not that Bakana, Bonny Island, Buguma , Port Harcourt, Ahoada, Umuahia, Aba, Owerri some of those my key places could be properly regarded as a microcosm of Nigeria - the rest of Nigeria - the North and the West being so very different.
For example, take the unforgettable Nigerian Presidential Elections that were conducted on the 6th of August 1983 which happened to be my 14th wedding anniversary and, most sadly, Hiroshima Day. By 2 pm the voting was over in Bakana, and the celebratory dancing titled “NPN Magic” erupted spontaneously, started at the residence of Levy Braide -the local NPN Minister of Agriculture, and spread to the other compounds on the island - made me wonder what could have been going on in real time in Buguma where there were many more compounds, how the joy could have been spreading there….
Early that morning in Bakana, some NPN hoodlums had dragged the rival NPP candidate head first, down the staircase of his two-storey dwelling and given him a good hiding. His crime? Him noh fraid God but had the cheek to wanna stand against the Kalabari people of Bakana’s darling Levy Braide? The good hiding was meant to teach him a lesson. Well, just as I said, voting was over by 2pm, and in writing about this elsewhere, as if truth is indeed stranger than fiction, it was thought that I was being surreal, with a good dose of Gabriel García Márquez and Ben Okri type of ”magical realism” when I’m merely being strictly honest, pedestrian, no flight of fancy but only everyday down-to-earth and faithfully, factually reporting what actually happened, that the NPN Magic dance started at a few seconds after 2 pm when the voting had been completed at Bakana, that alcoholic beverages were distributed copiously, that the party was in full swing by the evening , and needless to say (over-voting) , so I was told, when it eventually came to counting the ballots, the excess ballots were thrown into the river.
And what were the headlines in Sweden’s Dagens Nyheter? The headline was “Triumph For Democracy In Nigeria ” - in fulfilment of the formula, you want democracy? Crazy Demo? We will arrange an election !
Indeed, being there made all the difference when it came to first-hand, first person testimony and perception - as Robert Frost profoundly put it
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
You, John Onyeukwu Esq, having established credibility as a sane and balanced reporter and opinion maker , I daresay, if only the people and leaders who have ears could listen to what you have to say …and hearken to your cry
If only some clever person could collate and edit what you have said and have been saying these past three weeks in the USA Africa Dialogue Series… it would boil down to a two part advocacy (a) from you to the people, and (b) to the leaders…
Antonio Rey & Paquito González in Solera Flamenca: "Dos partes de mi". Bulería
Best Regards,
Cornelius