APC, PDP Must Prove They’re Not Terrorist Organisations – Falana

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has said that the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) must “urgently” take legal steps to prove they are not terrorist organisations, following a recent Canadian court ruling describing them as such.

In a statement on Monday, Falana argued that the Nigerian political parties should clear their names instead of hurling insults at the Canadian court.

“Instead of abusing the Canadian judge, the APC and PDP should, as a matter of urgency, adopt legal measures to prove that they are not terrorist organisations,” he said.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) linked the Canadian court’s ruling to Nigeria’s history of violent elections, rigging and political impunity, which he said validates the Canadian court’s decision.

“It is common knowledge that both APC and PDP rig elections and announce fake results with the assistance of armed police personnel and soldiers. Concerned citizens who kick against rigging are violently attacked and killed, while the perpetrators are never prosecuted,” he noted.

Falana recalled past remarks by political leaders, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s declaration that the 2003 election was a “do-or-die affair,” and President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 statement urging his supporters to “fight for power, grab it, snatch it, and run with it”.

The human rights lawyer said such rhetoric, coupled with widespread electoral violence, reinforced the Canadian court’s finding that Nigeria’s ruling parties operate through brute force.

He further criticised the Nigerian government for what he described as a class-biased application of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act.

According to him, while unarmed citizens arrested during the #EndHardship protests (#EndBadGovernance) still face terrorism charges, politicians who embezzle public funds, “leading to the deaths of poor citizens, are never tried for terrorism.”

Warning of the international implications of the Canadian judgment, Falana said asylum applications by Nigerians linked to APC or PDP may now be denied, with the risk of deportation from countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.

“If the ruling is not set aside, it may be registered in the United States, the UK, France, etc. The implication is that members of the APC and PDP may be deported or have their visas revoked,” he cautioned.

The lawyer urged the federal government to act swiftly, stressing, “The government should hire immigration lawyers to take urgent action to remove the stigma of infamy in the Canadian court’s judgment.

The collateral damage of the judgment will undoubtedly affect other citizens since the Government of their homeland has been sponsored by two terrorist political parties.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has called on the Canadian authorities to immediately retract what it described as the “erroneous” designation of some political parties in Nigeria as terrorist organisations.