Human rights lawyer and political activist Dele Farotimi has said that a revolution is needed to save Nigeria, calling for the restructuring of the country and the emergence of a new national vision capable of mobilising citizens for change.
Farotimi made the remarks in a statement expressing concerns about the state of Nigeria’s democracy, the electoral process and the role of the judiciary.
He argued that Nigerians’ votes could be undermined if citizens failed to take collective action, warning that the country could drift towards dictatorship if people remained passive.
“Your votes do not count and the judiciary will endorse it unless we decide to do something about it, because we are sleeping whilst a dictatorship is being installed in our country, demon-cratically,” he said.
The activist maintained that Nigeria needed to be restructured and reimagined, urging citizens to unite around a common vision for a new country.
According to him, addressing the country’s challenges would require bringing together a critical mass of Nigerians who feel affected by the existing system and presenting them with an alternative vision of governance.
Farotimi stressed that the proposed revolution could take place through the ballot box, although he expressed doubts about whether the existing political process alone could deliver the desired transformation.
He said the focus should shift from individual politicians to a clearly defined vision for Nigeria, arguing that citizens would be more willing to defend their votes if they were united behind a common agenda.
“The one thing I have never been shy about is to tell you what it will take to save Nigeria. It will take a revolution to save Nigeria,” Farotimi said.
He added that a leadership capable of articulating a compelling national vision and presenting it to voters could mobilise Nigerians towards what he described as a “democratic revolution.”
