Falana further warned that Nigeria clearly has its job cut out to stop coups which is that it "must allow political pluralism in Nigeria.”
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has warned that growing discontent and shrinking political freedoms across West Africa threaten long-term stability, insisting that many citizens are “unhappy” with current policies.
Falana further warned that Nigeria clearly has its job cut out to stop coups which is that it "must allow political pluralism in Nigeria.”
Falana, SAN, gave the warning during an interview on Channels TV, where he said Nigeria must address the fundamental causes of political unrest if it intends to play a stabilising role in the region.
He explained that several domestic challenges must be confronted to secure meaningful stability.
He said, “If we want to have political stability in Nigeria, you must address the crisis of the economy, address poverty, tackle illiteracy, and curb insecurity of lives and property.”
The human rights advocate criticised what he described as the shrinking civic space and the criminalisation of dissent.
According to him, “You must show that the political space will not shrink as it is now. You have a shrinking of the political space, and that must stop. There must be freedom of expression.”
Falana added that prosecuting citizens for speaking on national issues undermines democracy.
He noted, “You cannot be charging people with all manner of offences for expressing their views about the affairs of their country.”
He also urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to widen democratic participation.
He said, “More importantly, INEC must open the political space and allow ideological political parties to be registered to challenge the status quo. Right now, INEC is not prepared to open the political space.”
Falana stated that political leaders in several African countries suppress opposition groups, contributing to unrest across the continent, and repeated that many citizens are “unhappy” with existing policies.
He warned that Nigeria must avoid practices capable of weakening pluralism.
“Nigeria clearly has its job cut out. If you want to stop coups, you must allow political pluralism in Nigeria,” he said.
"You cannot have a situation where the country is moving towards a one-party state, and you want to export democracy. Nigeria has to put its house in order to align with political pluralism.”
On whether recent coups may continue, Falana said, “It won’t be the last. I’m familiar with the political terrain. Once you put opposition leaders in jail, send them into exile, or kill them, you cannot have political stability.”
Falana referenced the failed coup attempt in the Benin Republic and urged Nigeria to “show leadership in stabilising the region.”
The attempt, led by Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri, saw soldiers seize the state television station in Cotonou and announce the removal of President Patrice Talon.
The uprising was crushed within hours by Nigerian troops and the ECOWAS standby force. Officials said several people were killed, at least 14 suspects were arrested, and Tigri remains at large.
The plotters had cited worsening security, disputed military promotions, and restrictions linked to the 2026 election.
The African Union, United Nations, European Union, and ECOWAS condemned the attempted coup.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Senate has approved the deployment of troops to the Benin Republic following a request by President Bola Tinubu.