Falana, Falz, and a coalition of civil society groups have declared June 12 a day of nationwide protest over insecurity and economic hardship in Nigeria. The action is scheduled for Thursday, Democracy Day, one of the country’s most symbolically charged public holidays.
The declaration was contained in a statement on Wednesday, jointly signed by the National Chairman of the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond, Femi Falana (SAN); National President of the Committee for the Defense of Human Rights, Yinka Folarin; and Hassan Soweto of the Organizing Committee of the #EndBadGovernance Movement, Lagos State. Other signatories include the organizing secretary of the Nigeria Patriotic Front Movement, Yusha’u Yankuzo; secretary of initiative and mediation, Zauren Tuntuba da Sasanci, Ali Attahiru; and rapper, singer, and songwriter Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz.
Femi Falana has partnered with 16 civil society organizations to lead the mass mobilization. The coalition, comprising trade unions, youth groups, social movements, and faith-based organizations, noted that the demonstration is timed to coincide with Nigeria’s annual Democracy Day. That date was designated by the federal government to honor Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election.
The coalition accused the federal government of failing to protect lives and address the deepening economic crisis confronting millions of Nigerians. According to the coalition, there is nothing to celebrate on June 12, as many Nigerians continue to live in fear of attacks by terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, and other criminal elements, with various states recording a surge in abductions, killings, and other forms of terrorism.
The statement said the nationwide protest was aimed, among other things, at demanding the immediate release of Nigerians being held captive in Oyo, Borno, Ekiti, Kwara, and other states. The statement specifically mentioned victims of abductions in Oyo, Borno, Katsina, Kwara, Ekiti, Zamfara, Kaduna, and Niger states, as well as other parts of the federation affected by kidnapping and related crimes.
“Innocent Nigerians are being killed, abducted, displaced, and traumatized while government responses have remained largely inadequate and ineffective,” the statement read. “For years, the people have been subjected to repeated assurances that insecurity is being defeated. Yet the killings continue. Communities are attacked, schools are threatened, farmers cannot safely access their farms, and highways remain unsafe,” the coalition added.
The coalition did not limit its grievances to security. The activists said the removal of the fuel subsidy, repeated increases in fuel prices, currency devaluation, rising electricity tariffs, and the commercialization of essential services had pushed millions deeper into poverty. The coalition said that despite increased statutory allocations to federal, state, and local governments, ordinary citizens continue to struggle under soaring inflation and declining purchasing power.
According to the coalition, soaring food prices, escalating transportation costs, and the collapse of many small- and medium-scale businesses have left millions struggling to survive. The coalition further argued that workers’ wages remain inadequate in the face of persistent inflation, while citizens continue to bear the burden of rising costs despite increased statutory allocations to all levels of government.
The coalition said the June 12 protest would be the first in a series of actions aimed at pressuring the government to tackle insecurity and reverse policies that have deepened poverty and hardship, calling on workers, students, traders, artisans, professionals, market women, unemployed youths, religious bodies, and community groups to mobilize and participate in the demonstrations.
The African Action Congress (AAC) separately directed its members, candidates, aspirants, and party structures across the country to participate in the nationwide protest scheduled for June 12, 2026. The directive was contained in a circular issued by the party’s National Secretariat and signed by the National Secretary, Comrade Oshiokhue Philip Ikpeminoghena.
The Take It Back Movement also called on residents of Rivers State to participate, urging youths, workers, students, market women, civil society organizations, and professionals to converge on the Federal Secretariat in Port Harcourt from 7am for what it described as a peaceful civic assembly and demonstration.
The activists and advocates confirmed the June 12 protest would be one of a series of actions aimed at compelling the government to address insecurity and reverse policies described as anti-poor. “The Nigerian people deserve a pro-people government that places the protection of lives and property at the core of governance,” the coalition stated.
The federal government had not issued a formal response to the protest declaration as of the time of this report. The June 12 nationwide protests are set to proceed Thursday across multiple states, with organizers calling it the opening action in a sustained campaign against insecurity and economic hardship in Nigeria.
