Former Vice President and presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of attempting to politicize Nigeria’s judiciary by “dragging judges into the APC.”
Atiku’s accusations follow a video clip from the opening session of the 2025 All Nigerian Judges Conference, in which Tinubu’s campaign anthem, “On Your Mandate,” was reportedly played in place of the National Anthem at the conclusion of Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun’s speech.
The former presidential candidate, who said the video was sent to him, described the incident as “an assault on national dignity” and warned that it signals a dangerous blurring of the line between state institutions and party politics.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Atiku questioned how confidence could be built in the judiciary when the executive arm allegedly inserts partisan propaganda into solemn judicial gatherings.
He emphasized that judges swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and dispense justice impartially, not to stand “on the mandate” of any individual or political party.
According to him, “On Monday, I was sent a video clip from Channels TV’s coverage of the opening session of the 2025 All Nigerian Judges Conference. What I saw was nothing short of an assault on our national dignity: “On Your Mandate,” President Tinubu’s personal political anthem, was brazenly played in place of the National Anthem at the end of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun’s speech.
“My first instinct was to dismiss it as a deepfake. But once it was confirmed to be authentic—an actual reflection of what transpired on the very day President Tinubu lectured the judiciary on integrity and the rule of law, I waited for an explanation from the Presidency or the office of the CJN. Silence. Total, deafening silence.
“Ironically, on the same day, President Tinubu stood before Nigerian judges and sermonized about safeguarding integrity and upholding the sanctity of their profession. He stressed that “confidence is the lifeblood of justice,” and that public perception must be fiercely protected to sustain our democracy.
“Yet, while preaching morality, his administration allowed (or engineered) the playing of his own partisan campaign music before the entire Nigerian judiciary—a shocking desecration of protocol, ethics, and national pride.
“Let it be said clearly and without hesitation: Replacing the National Anthem with Tinubu’s “On Your Mandate” in a hall full of judges is reckless, scandalous, disgraceful, and deeply irresponsible.
It is the most blatant signal yet that this government is attempting to drag the judiciary into the partisan gutters of the APC, if not coerce a wholesale “defection” of Nigerian judges into political alignment.
“How can confidence be built when the executive arm openly inserts partisan propaganda into a solemn judicial gathering? How can judges dispense justice fearlessly when Tinubu’s operatives are busy eroding the boundaries between state, party, and personal ambition?
“Let the records be clear: Nigerian judges swore an oath to defend the Constitution, justice, and the rule of law, not to stand “on the mandate” of Bola Ahmed Tinubu or any other individual. This affront must be condemned by all who still believe in constitutional democracy. -AA
