Economist and political activist, Professor Pat Utomi declared that he was unafraid of arrest or death following legal action initiated against him by the Department of State Services (DSS) over his formation of a shadow government.
LEADERSHIP recalls that on May 5, Utomi launched the Big Tent Coalition Shadow Government, a platform he described as a credible opposition designed to hold President Bola Tinubu’s administration accountable.
The coalition, Utomi said, comprised members who were drawn from opposition parties and civil society, tasked with monitoring government activities, identifying policy failures, and proposing alternative solutions in sectors such as the economy, education, healthcare, and constitutional reform.
However, the DSS dragged the former African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate to court, accusing him of attempting to usurp the president’s executive powers and warning that his actions could incite instability.
Reacting via his official X handle on Friday, Utomi dismissed the accusations and maintained his commitment to democracy and freedom of expression.
“I am heartened by messages of solidarity from across Nigeria on this shadowy business of chasing shadows of shadow cabinets,” he wrote. “It’s energising that some want to put together 500 lawyers to defend me against the DSS.”
Utomi questioned the priorities of Nigeria’s intelligence service, suggesting the DSS should instead focus on enforcing constitutional provisions against political defections.
“It’s amazing that we are chasing shadows while our constitution is unravelling, aided by those in power. The constitution holds that those who defect from parties for which they were elected from must have their seats declared vacant. If DSS enjoys going to court, it should prosecute such,” he said.
The political economist also invoked the memory of his pro-democracy activism under the military regime of General Sani Abacha.
He referenced a key moment in the 1990s when he chaired a conference on Nigeria’s future at St. Leo’s Catholic Church in Ikeja, Lagos.
“Under Abacha, we brought Nigerians together at St. Leo in Ikeja for a conference on the future of Nigeria. I chaired the planning which came out of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, on the watch of then Fr. (Matthew Hassan) Kukah and (George) Ehusani,” he recalled. “Now for shadowing democracy, hell comes.”
Declaring he will return to Nigeria on June 12, a day symbolic of Nigeria’s democracy struggle, Utomi said he was ready for any consequences.
“My hands are primed for handcuffs, and if the Aquino treatment from Marcos bullet at the airport is preferred, I submit willing like a lamb led to slaughter. Death is no big deal. Four of my friends are in the morgue,” he wrote.
Utomi also issued a warning to President Bola Tinubu, implying that no one escapes the judgment of history.
“What is certain is that Tinubu will not escape that same fate… We all ultimately go the way of man.”
Drawing inspiration from freedom icons such as Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and Martin Luther King Jr., Utomi reaffirmed his resolve to continue speaking truth to power.
“To the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and the holy watch of St. Thomas More, I raise the meaning of being for what is left of my time on this stage,” he stated.
Referencing Carl Sagan’s “pale blue dot” speech, he concluded, “I am emboldened to chant ‘freedom now.’ If we die, we die.”
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