Emmanuel
Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party’s 2023 presidential contender, has demanded the release of Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as Verydarkman (VDM), a social media personality and rights activist.
The leader of the PDP also called the government’s continuous suppression of opposition voices “disgraceful”.
After receiving some petitions against him, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) reportedly arrested Otse on May 2.
At the time the report was filed, he was reportedly under the EFCC’s custody.
According to Deji Adeyanju, his attorney, who verified Otse’s detention on X, a group of police officers “arrested VDM at GTB” together with his friend C Park.
The social media personality and “outspoken critic” was arrested and detained by the EFCC, but Atiku said in a post on X that this was “another blatant abuse of power by the Tinubu administration, which has made political repression a hallmark of its rule.”
The former vice president claimed that Otse’s continued detention without official charges was a “flagrant violation of his constitutional rights” and that this was even more concerning.
This, he said, was a “chilling reminder of the growing authoritarianism under this government”.
Atiku said, “This latest episode is part of a disturbing pattern: the Tinubu regime’s relentless assault on the fundamental freedoms of Nigerians, particularly those who dare to speak truth to power or align with the political opposition.
“We must not allow state-sponsored repression to become the defining character of our democracy.
“While security agencies are quick to target dissenters and critics, often in complete disregard of due process, political loyalists with credible allegations of corruption walk free, trading sycophancy for immunity.”
The PDP chieftain also described the government’s systematic crackdown on opposition voices as disgraceful and an affront to democratic norms that must be fiercely condemned and resisted.
