A United States-based lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., hired by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has announced it is engaging the US government over alleged human rights violations in Nigeria. The firm claims that President Bola Tinubu’s administration is intensifying political intimidation, detaining critics, and eroding democratic freedoms ahead of the 2027 elections.
In a statement posted Monday on its official X account, the firm accused the Tinubu government of “increasingly displaying the behaviour of a single-party dictatorship consolidating power through fear and intimidation.”
The lobbying firm cited multiple cases of public figures and ordinary Nigerians facing legal and physical pressure for criticizing the government. Among those referenced were former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, who remains in custody despite a Federal High Court granting him bail, and businessman John Olatunde Ayeni, reportedly targeted for his public criticism of the administration.
“Thousands of ordinary Nigerians with no public profile are being arrested, beaten, intimidated, or disappearing without international attention,” the statement warned. It also pledged to brief US President Donald Trump’s administration and Congress about what it described as the “growing weaponisation of state institutions to silence dissent ahead of the next presidential election.”
El-Rufai’s prolonged detention, currently at 91 days, has fueled protests in Abuja, with demonstrators accusing security agencies of ignoring court orders and denying him access to medical care and legal counsel.
The allegations come amid escalating political tensions in Nigeria, raising concerns about civil liberties and governance ahead of the next presidential election cycle.
