#EndBadGovernance 10: What four activists charged with treason told police

Four of the 10 people charged with treason regarding the August #EndBadGovernance protests share rare insights into how the protest was organised and its purpose.

On 2 September, the Nigerian government brought 10 individuals arrested in connection with the August #EndBadGovernance protests before the Federal High Court in Abuja to face prosecution.

The defendants, arrested in Kaduna State, Jos in Plateau State, Mararaba in Nasarawa State and different places in Abuja, were charged with collaborating with a British socialist, Andrew Wynne, to overthrow President Bola Tinubu and wage war against Nigeria.

The #EndBadGovernance protests, held from 1 to 10 August, were fuelled by widespread discontent over President Tinubu’s economic policies, which have led to a rising cost of living and worsened the hardships faced by poor Nigerians.

Displeased with the protest, the Nigerian government cracked down on the protesters, with security forces harassing, brutalising and indiscriminately firing live ammunition and tear at peaceful protesters and journalists.

More than 20 people were reportedly killed by security forces across different states during the protests.

Also, at least 1,200 people were arrested in connection with the protests across states, including where the demonstrations turned violent, and protesters were seen waving Russian flags. Many of these defendants are still in custody without charge.

The 10 individuals brought to the Federal High Court in Abuja have faced the most severe charges stemming from the protest yet, including treason, instigating the military to overthrow President Tinubu and waging war against Nigeria.

The police have declared the Briton, Mr Wynne, who is central to all six charges filed against the 10 defendants, a wanted person.

However, Mr Wynne, who owned the bookshop that was raided by the police within the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) headquarters in Abuja in the wake of the protests, has denied all allegations. The Briton, who said he had visited Nigeria on business visas five to six times annually for 25 years, disclosed that he freely left Nigeria on 4 August. He denied the allegation of funding the alleged plot to overthrow President Tinubu and insisted that the protest was not treason. His link to the NLC has also led to the arrest and detention of NLC President, Joe Ajaero, for questioning by the Nigerian government.

All 10 defendants have also denied all six charges. Their detailed responses to the allegations are contained in the copies of the statements they wrote in custody, which the police filed in court as part of the “proof of evidence” against them. PREMIUM TIMES obtained copies of the statements to gain and share deeper understanding of the case.

Although the defendants are at liberty to contest the voluntariness of the entire or specific aspects of the statements at trial, the individual handwritten accounts provide rare insights into how the #EndBadGovernance protest was organised and its goal, Mr Wynne’s personality and his roles in the protests, and the extent of the government’s sweep for anyone with even the slightest connection to the protest. Some of the defendants who have yet to meet their bail conditions are still in custody.

Below are the accounts of four of them who had an encounter with Mr Wynne.

Angel Innocent – ‘I told him he should stop directing people to his place of choice’

Angel Innocent, the only female among the 10 defendants, was arrested in Abuja.

The exact place of her arrest is not stated in the statement she wrote in police custody. However, what was clear from the statement was that she was arrested in Abuja at about 10 a.m. on 19 August.

In the statement, the 51-year-old woman, who said she was a realtor and a single mother of a son, described herself as “a concerned lover of that name Nigeria, who wants the unity and welfare of the citizens.”

She confirmed participating in the protest for the first two days but denied being part of the organisers.

She recounted her experience on the protest ground at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja and her virtual encounter with Mr Wynne.

Ms Innocent, who identified Mr Wynne by his other alias, Drew, said she learnt of him for the first time on the first day of the protest when an acquaintance and co-protester identified as Lucky was speaking to the Briton over the phone.

“I asked him who the man was. That voice I heard was like a white man’s voice,” she stated, adding that Lucky responded, describing the person as “a friend named Drew.” She said Lucky immediately handed his phone to her to try her luck talking the Briton out of his somewhat rigid procession routes. She said Lucky told her that the man “is stubborn and authoritative.”

Lucky ran out of airtime, so she could not speak to Mr Wynne, according to her. She said she then took the Briton’s phone number and dialled it on her phone. “When I called him and introduced myself, I told him he should stop directing people to his place of choice and that there are people that know Abuja more than him, as I can understand.”

Apparently asked by a police interrogator, she said, “I don’t know, and I’ve never seen anybody called Povich.” Mr Wynne has said the name Povich is a fabrication of the police to connote his false link to Russia. The Nigerian government had justified its crackdown on the protesters by alleging that they were sponsored by foreigners to destabilise Nigeria, citing the waving of Russian flags during the procession in Kano.

Her statement also discussed her involvement in WhatsApp groups related to the #EndBadGovernance protest and human rights issues in Nigerians.

She wrote about a WhatsApp group called the Advocate for a New Nigeria that she belonged to, which, she said, was for advocating for the unity of Nigeria and the rights and privileges of Nigerians. She said the group was created sometime in October/November 2023 with a membership of about 600 to 700.

She also recalled that Lucky, whom she first met during the 2023 general elections, added her to another WhatsApp group called the Abuja End Bad Governance. At Lucky’s invitation, she joined the group two or three days before the protest started on 1 August. Ms Innocent added that she refused Lucky’s entreaties to invite members of the Advocate for a New Nigeria group to the Abuja End Bad Governance group. “I never sent the link nor added anyone,” she wrote but acknowledged that she later met some Advocate of New Nigeria WhatsApp group members on the protest ground.

She said the Advocate for a New Nigeria group was not for fighting the government. “It is rather for advocating for a better welfare of citizens,” which Nigerians have been denied “from the inception of our democracy.”

Writing about the events that transpired at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja on the first day of the protest, she recalled seeing thugs arrive in 10 Coaster buses that morning. According to her, behind the last of the buses was an SUV, whose unseen occupants, she believed, mobilised the thugs to disrupt the protest. PREMIUM TIMES reported the arrival of at least 11 buses filled with ‘No protest’ protesters at the stadium that day.

“The boys were standing watching us,” she wrote. However, she said as she and other protesters were about to move, “those boys joined us, and were speaking in Hausa language, and abusing the government that they gave them N5,000, which is their money to stop the protest.” “Surprisingly, most of them had knives and scissors,” Ms Innocent wrote.

She recalled that journalists interviewed her and some other protesters about what brought about the crisis at the venue and replied that it was “shooting and tear gassing.” PREMIUM TIMES reported shooting and tear gassing by the police at the venue that day.

She said she stopped attending the protest after the second day and spoke with Lucky over the phone on the fifth day to inquire about the demonstration since the time she last attended. According to her, Lucky expressed the desire to mobilise more people to join the demonstrations.

Ms Innocent, an HND holder from Anambra State who relocated to Abuja after completing her national youth service in Bauchi State in 2000, insisted she did not mobilise anyone to join the protest. “Not even a single person for this protest,” she stated.

The woman who expressed her strong conviction in the protest denied being induced to participate. “Please, I wasn’t given any money or received any money from anybody or organisation to destroy the present government. NO, please, I didn’t mobilise apart from me and myself.”

“The protest has already been accepted by the government that is why I joined the protest,” Ms Innocent wrote, while she also denied fronting for any organisation in the #EndBadGovernance protest.

Michael Adaramoye (aka Lenin), 28 – ‘As a Nigerian, it is my right to protest peacefully’

Michael Adaramoye, 28 years old, also known by his alias Lenin, described himself in his statements to the police as a content writer, a graphic designer, and a human rights activist.

He recounted how he and three others, including Mosiu Sodiq, one of his co-defendants, were arrested by State Security Service (SSS) operatives around 2:00 a.m. on 5 August in Apo, Abuja, where he was squatting with a friend.

He wrote two statements to the police at 7.10 p.m. on 15 August and 9.30 p.m. on 17 August.

Born to parents from Ekiti State, Mr Adaramoye said he was raised in Ile-Ife in Osun State and only relocated to Abuja in February.

He named various socialism-leaning WhatsApp groups to which he belonged and his interactions with Mr Wynee.

Framing the arc of his life as a tale of socialism-driven activism, he noted that he belonged to the Advocates in Defence for Human Rights and Culture, a group which was created in 2020 and is open to all Nigerians.

He said the Human Rights and Culture group has the aim of “correcting social disjoints created by the practices of dumping foreign policies and the instruments of law on our people by the Nigerian government without regard to our culture.”

Although he denied being an organiser/coordinator of the #EndBadGovernance protest, he said that on 25 July 2024, he created a WhatsApp group, Abuja Protest Update, with 12 members. He also said he belonged to the EndBadGovernance Strategy WhatsApp group, which has six members and one admin.

“My own group is for activists in Abuja where discussions on the protest were held,” he wrote.

He confirmed participating in the #EndBadGovernance protest on 1 August at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, where, he said, it was held peacefully.

“I have no sponsor in the EndBadGovernance protest,” he said, adding, “I was never paid/hired to engage in the EndBadGovernance protest.” Sounding uncowed, Mr Adaramoye asserted, “As a Nigerian, it is my right to protest peacefully.”

He denied knowing “Mrs Angel Innocent, Opaluwa Eleojo, Andrew Povich and Mr Lucky before.” Ms Innocent and Mr Eleojo are charged as his co-defendants.

In his other statement, he recounted his encounter and relationship with Mr Wynne.

“I know Andrew Wynne. I met him years ago at a bookshop inside the NLC secretariat. From his appearance, he doesn’t appear like a Nigerian to me; he appears like a foreign national. I do not know his country of origin. The day we met, we had discussions on feminism and women’s rights. I later met him at a NLC convention,” Mr Adaramoye wrote.

He emphasised his aversion to foreign intervention in Nigeria and disassociated himself from the use of the Russian flag by some protesters in Kano. Mr Adaramoye further noted that he never conspired with Mr Wynne to overthrow President Tinubu.

The activist, who noted that he neither belonged to any political party nor ever voted in any election in Nigeria, said, “It is not true that there is a chain of activists in Nigeria supported by any foreign body to cause public unrest … instability and breakdown of law and order using the protest as a disguise.”

He said that before his arrest, he had clarified his stance against foreign intervention in Nigeria in an interview with Solomon Odeniyi of The PUNCH Newspaper. “I responded to him by saying that I am opposed to foreign intervention in Nigeria, and I’m unaware and unconnected to the use of Russian flag by some protesters in Kano. It’s not true that I joined forces with Andrew Wynne Martins, also known as Andrew Povey,” Mr Adaramoye stated.

Sharing insights into his personal life, he detailed his struggles to further his education, including gaining admission into Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife in 2014 to study philosophy and dropping out at the 300 level in 2018 to pursue a law programme abroad. He said his ambition to study abroad was unsuccessful.

He added that he had been visiting Abuja since 2019 until he finally relocated to the capital city in February 2024.

On how he was arrested, he said, at about 2.00 a.m. on 5 August, “some security operatives believed to be from the SSS “stormed my friend’s house, Babatunde Oluajo, and arrested myself, Babatunde Oluajo, Yaya Kolawole, and Mosiu Sodiq.”

“I was identified as their target at the point of arrest. I and the other three persons were taken to DSS (SSS) facility where we were interrogated and later brought to FID/IRT at about 7 p.m. on the same day for investigations,” he added.

Adeyemi Abayomi – Sheds light on his roles and those of Andrew Wynne and others

Adeyemi Abayomi, 34, is the Manager of Mr Wynne’s Abuja-based Iva Valley Bookshop.

He previously worked as a storekeeper and later as Mr Wynne’s driver before becoming the manager of his bookshop in August 2023.

He recounted how SSS operatives arrested him at his home in Mararaba, Nasarawa State, at about 4.00 p.m. on 5 August.

After being turned over to the police, Mr Abayomi wrote his statement in Abuja between 8.30 a.m. and 9.00 a.m. on 27 August, painting a portrait of Mr Wynne, who he fondly called by his alias, Drew Povey, as an ardent socialist.

His statement also sheds light on Mr Wynne’s socialist activities in Nigeria and his strong ties with the NLC. He described Mr Wynne’s organisation, Socialist Labour, as an affiliate of the NLC.

Mr Abayomi wrote about Mr Wynne’s leadership and the key roles he, Mr Adaramoye, and others played in organising the #EndBadGovernance protest in Abuja.

According to him, beyond the August protest, Mr Wynne, through his Socialist Labour group, has been the linchpin of major protests organised by labour unions in Nigeria, including the NLC and PEGASSAN.

He described Socialist Labour as “a group that encourages the trade unions to push the government to make life easy for citizens.”

Mr Abayomi said, in addition to serving as Mr Wynne’s driver and bookshop manager, he served as the “protest manager under the umbrella of Socialist Labour.”

He said that in Mr Wynne’s capacity as the overall leader of the #EndBadGovernance protest in Abuja, the Briton “organised” protest-themed platforms – Abuja Protest Update, Abuja Nigeria August Protest and Executive Leadership Council for Abuja/Nigeria August Protest.

“I personally represent Mr Drew Povey, particularly organising protests and management of meetings with members of the labour unions, PENGASON & SMD. I also manage and represent Mr Drew Dovey in the Abuja Nigeria August Protest, (and) Executive Leadership Council for Abuja/Nigeria August Protest,” he wrote.

He also referenced another group, the Abuja Left Protest platform, managed by Mr Adaramoye.

Mr Abayomi, who is married with a child, said Mr Wynne sent “his protest donation” to the treasurer of their group.

For his part, he said, “I used my personal money to design the banners.” The graduate of computer science/education said the banners had inscriptions like: ‘Abuja August Protest’, ‘Reverse the Fuel Subsidy’, ‘Reverse the hike of school fees’, ‘Pay all Arrears and Pension’, and ‘Reduce the price of food items and commodities’.

A day before the protest, Mr Abayomi said, “Our protest overall boss, Mr Drew Povey,” gave a directive that the march should start from the local areas and go to the central area, the Old Parade Ground, police station, Eagle Square, and then to the Villa.

“On 1 August 2024, I took over the protest as a manager of National Stadium after my boss, Mr Drew Povey, travelled to the United Kingdom and left directives to Adaramoye, Helen, his wife, Angel, Lucky and me,” he wrote.

The activist regretted that the protest turned violent in some parts of the country and repeatedly stated that the aim of the protest “was to encourage the government to reverse policies that make life difficult for citizens.”

“The Nigeria Labour Congress announced that they are not part of the protest, which was held from 1 to 10 August 2024. But some other groups like Socialist Labour, among others, protested. The aim of the protest was to encourage the government to reverse policies that make life difficult for citizens. Unfortunately, the protest turned violent in some parts of Nigeria, but that was never part of the aim of the protest,” he wrote. “But the aim of the Socialist Labour was clear: to encourage the government administration to be helpful in their policies.”

He maintained that “the Socialist Labour is not against the government because the group discusses current matters in the country and how they can be better placed.”

“Our aims and objectives of the protest are to make the government or the present administration do the right thing by reversing fuel subsidy or reducing the price of fuel, food, creating jobs, employment for youths and also building other facilities, e.g. hospitals, schools, and good roads for transportation. Etc,” the activist wrote.

He wrote that Mr Tinubu’s administration “spends less on education, minimum wage, pension and health” and that the “agenda” of Mr Wynne and his family is to “assist this present government administration to comply and help the poor masses to ease their suffering.”

His statement explains Mr Wynne’s ties with the NLC and labour movement in Nigeria and the operation of his bookshop, which the police raided in the wake of the clampdown on the Briton.

“The bookshop is located on the second floor of the Nigeria Labour Congress building in the Central Business District, Abuja. The same shop was given to Mr Drew Povey for free by the Nigeria Labour Congress. In the bookshop, we sell the following: socialist books, economics books, environmental books, pamphlets, novels and socialist monthly bulletins.

“Mr Drew Povey also belongs to a socialist group called Socialist Labour with the website socialistlabour.com.

“I drive Mr Drew Povey to most offices to sell the monthly socialist bulletins. We both belong to the Nigeria Labour Congress.”

He said that somehow, after the protest on its first day, he received a phone call from a security guard at the Labour House, who told him that “the police raided our bookshop, and I informed my boss, who told me not to go to the shop.” He said the police had managed to discover their activities and plans.

“And I immediately briefed my boss on WhatsApp on the latest development,” Mr Abayomi said, adding that Mr Wynne advised him against going to the bookshop.

But he would later be arrested at his home in Mararaba, Nasarawa State. He said the police found in his possession a few copies of fliers, an NLC cap, an NLC bib, an NLC cloth material, and a book titled, ‘Labor and Monopoly Capital’.

Opaluwa Eleojo – ‘I’m not aware that the group … intended to make the protest violent’

Opaoluwa Eleojo, 50, is the vice chairman of the Kogi State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

The veteran unionist said he obtained a BSc and an MSc in Criminology and Security Studies from the National Open University (NOUN) between 2015 and 2023 and is currently pursuing a PhD in the same area.

He was arrested under a bridge in Mararaba, Nasarawa State, while trying to pay for a cloth around 2:30 p.m. on one of the protest days. He did not specify the exact date of his arrest in the statement he wrote while in police custody.

Mr Eleojo, a National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) staff member, penned his statement at 10 p.m. on 4 August while in custody. Although he said he was neither an organiser nor a participant in the protest, he confirmed being a member of WhatsApp groups coordinated by Mr Wynne, where the protest was discussed.

Mr Eleojo explained that he did not participate in the #EndBadGovernance protest because his union, the NLC, declared it would not be involved.

He mentioned being part of a WhatsApp group called Abuja/Nigeria Protest Operations EndBadGovernance and Reset Nigeria, which he joined at Mr Wynne’s invitation. This group, consisting of 456 members, was organised for a “planned peaceful protest,” he said. Additionally, he was involved in another WhatsApp group, the Socialist Labour Support, which he described as an “NGO that is working-class centric,” also established by Mr Wynne. He also belonged to the FCT Abuja 2024 Mass Protest/Nigeria Vigilance Response Network (NVAPRN). Mr Eleojo stated that he remained in these groups to gather data for his PhD research.

He explained that he did not attend any meetings held by the members of the WhatsApp groups. “I’m not aware that the meeting was to recruit people to cause mayhem,” he added, writing further, “I’m not aware that the group threatened that the patience of the Nigerian youths has been taken for granted for so long or that they intended to make the protest violent.”

He recalled that Mr Wynne called him over the phone on 1 August to enquire about the situation in the country. During their conversation, Mr Eleojo said he shared news of violence in certain areas and gunshots at Sharp Corner in Mararaba that resulted in the death of a male adult. “It’s true that I had a conversation with Andrew Porvey on 1 August, but the information contained in our discussion was not meant to fuel the protest. I heard in the news about violence in the Mararaba area, where damage was recorded.”

Providing additional context to Mr Wynne’s call, Mr Eleojo said, “What prompted Povey to call me is that we have known each other as Congress members for over two years and have frequently discussed issues related to the working class, the struggles of Nigerians, and economic matters.”

Mr Eleojo said he had a relationship with the Nigerian police as an institution before his arrest last month. In his statement, he said that he completed his industrial training programme at the Force Criminal Intelligence Department and the General Investigation Department of the Nigerian Police Force in 2018 while pursuing his criminology and security studies at NOUN.