By Amaechi Agbo

President Bola Tinubu has cancelled the earlier scheduled nationwide broadcast to mark this year’s Democracy Day and will instead address Nigerians through a joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday, June 12.

The development was confirmed in a statement released by the Director of Information and Public Relations, Segun Imohiosen, on Tuesday. The presidency attributed the change to the President’s confirmed attendance at the special session of the National Assembly, where he is expected to deliver his Democracy Day speech.

According to the statement, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will now address the nation through the National Assembly as part of the events lined up for the 2024 Democracy Day celebration. All other plans remain unchanged as previously announced.”

This year’s celebration, marking the 26th anniversary of Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, is themed “Consolidating on the Gains of Nigeria’s Democracy: Necessity of Enduring Reforms.” The theme underscores the administration’s commitment to reinforcing democratic principles through sustained institutional and structural reforms.

President Tinubu’s address before the lawmakers is expected to centre on the government’s reform initiatives, the imperative of national cohesion, and the shared role of citizens and public institutions in nurturing and safeguarding the country’s democratic journey.

Meanwhile a clash between protesters and security operatives looms on Thursday (today) as the Take It Back Movement, the rally organisers, has resolved to carry out a demonstration at the National Assembly, Abuja and 19 other locations across the country during the June 12 celebrations.

The protest organisers said their intention is to take their campaign against economic hardship to the political leaders.

The group earlier planned to rally against the tough reforms implemented by the Tinubu administration at Eagle Square, but later announced a change of venue.

The protest, which is expected to draw participants from various civil society groups, is aimed at dragging attention to what the organisers described as “two years of misrule, hardship, and insecurity” under Tinubu’s government.

National Coordinator, Take It Back Movement, Juwon Sanyaolu, said the shift in protest location did not alter the objective of the demonstration.

“That we earlier said the protest would hold at the Eagle Square doesn’t foreclose the fact that Nigerians cannot organise themselves at the National Assembly to protest the two years of misrule under Tinubu,” Sanyaolu said.

“The unprecedented hardship and insecurity we have experienced under his government are alarming. So, Nigerians will be turning out nationwide to protest against this, and the National Assembly is one of those spaces where Nigerians can exercise their constitutional rights. We are encouraging Nigerians to move there in their numbers tomorrow (today).”

Sanyaolu cited rising poverty, rampant insecurity, and lack of democratic accountability as key grievances.

June 12 was officially recognised as Democracy Day by the Federal Government in remembrance of the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election, adjudged by many as the freest and fairest in the nation’s history.

The President’s engagement with the legislative arm on such a significant day is seen as symbolic of the democratic ethos his administration seeks to uphold.