Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has berated President Bola Tinubu for ignoring insecurity challenges while trying to execute protesters for treason.

In a statement posted on X on Wednesday, Mr Abubakar lamented the killings by Boko Haram in Yobe and other parts of northern states, attributing them to the Tinubu-led government’s “failure.”

“Despite the tragic bloodshed in Yobe, which has claimed scores of lives, and the rampant destruction across numerous villages in Katsina, Sokoto, and other towns within the North-West and North-Central regions, the government seems to remain detached, engrossed in inconsequential affairs,” Mr Abubakar said.

He added, “The turmoil extends to the South as well, where the disquiet wrought by Boko Haram and the unsettling political discord threatens the nation’s peace. Amidst these grave challenges, the federal government preoccupies itself with stifling dissent, resorting to draconian measures such as imposing death sentences on protesters.”

Mr Abubakar’s criticisms followed a recent Boko Haram attack in Yobe that left over a hundred dead.

Public outrage has trailed the trial of 10 hunger protesters for treason, a crime punishable by death under Nigerian law.

Human rights organisation Amnesty International outrightly condemned the treason charges against hunger protesters by Mr Tinubu’s government as a desperate move to manipulate the criminal justice system to punish critics.

In a statement on Monday, the organisation criticised Mr Tinubu’s government for targeting citizens who protested against endemic poverty and corruption with baseless charges.

“Some of the charges to be filed against the protesters, ranging from treason, which carries the death penalty, to allegations of ‘plans to destabilize Nigeria,’ show how far the Nigerian authorities can go in manipulating the criminal justice system to silence critical voices,” the human rights organisation said.

It added, “These attempts by President Bola Tinubu’s government to charge those who protested widespread poverty and rampant corruption with treason are beyond absurd and baseless.”

A six-count charge court document filed with number FHC/ABJ/CR/454/2024 by Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun shows that Mr Tinubu’s government has accused the protesters of felony and treason.

The first count in the document accuses the 10 protesters of “acting in concert and with intent to destabilise Nigeria, conspired together to commit felony to wit: Treason, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 96 and punishable under section 97 of the Penal Code.”

The 10 protesters facing treason charges and possible execution if convicted are Michael Tobiloba Adaramoye, Adeyemi Abiodun Abayomi, Suleiman Yakubu, Opaluwa Eleojo Simon, Angel Love Innocent, Buhari Lawal, Mosiu Sadiq, Bashir Bello, Nuradeen Khamis, and Abdulsalam Zubairu.