Renowned political economist and former presidential candidate Pat Utomi, says he may leave Nigeria over alleged attempts to silence him.
This is coming after Utomi announced the formation of a shadow government.
The initiative, launched virtually under the banner of the Big Tent Coalition Shadow Government, aims to serve as a “credible opposition” to the President Bola Tinubu administration.
Speaking on Wednesday, Utomi disclosed that he was getting fed up and added that he was ready to depart Nigeria for Ghana.
This development comes as the Department of State Services (DSS) filed a new application at the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking to curtail Utomi’s public engagements.
The security agency, through its counsel Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), urged the court to bar him and his associates from organizing rallies or making public comments related to a pending case against him.
In a separate motion filed on Wednesday, the DSS requested an interlocutory injunction to prevent Utomi from holding any form of public gathering, including road shows, media appearances, or publishing materials relating to the subject matter of the case.
The agency argued that such activities could threaten national stability and public safety.
In response, Utomi confirmed that a legal team led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, has submitted a formal defence on his behalf. The opposition figure decried what he sees as an orchestrated attempt to stifle dissent.
“I will retire next year and leave them to do whatever they want to do. I’m looking for a better country for the next generation. But politicians make it look like dissenting comments,” Utomi remarked.
He added: “I want to inspire the next generation to be free and make progress. It is now up to them. It is up to the current generation to realise that there are people who don’t want their country to grow”.
