AMNESTY International (AI) Nigeria has condemned the threats to a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, Ushie Rita Uguamaye, for criticising the administration of President Bola Tinubu over the hardships faced by Nigerians.

The human rights organisation expressed the displeasure in a statement on Sunday, March 16.

It said, “Millions of people in Nigeria are facing extreme poverty. So far, the authorities have failed to put in place effective mitigation measures, leaving millions of people without the hope of getting out of the economic challenges and enjoying their human rights.

“The Nigerian authorities must stop responding with violence and threats to individuals and groups who express dissenting opinions — in utter disregard for the Nigerian constitution and international law. Holding and voicing dissenting views is not a crime.”

It said it was within the corps member’s right to express discontent peacefully.

“Instead of threatening her for her opinions on rampant inflation, the authorities should be prioritising addressing the country’s economic woes,” Amnesty International added.

The ICIR reported earlier that a corps member in Lagos State raised concerns about her safety after allegedly receiving threats following a viral video in which she criticised Tinubu’s administration.

The corps member had posted a TikTok video lamenting the current escalating economic hardship.

She alleged that NYSC officials threatened her for refusing to delete the video.

The corps member had voiced her frustration over the worsening cost of living, claiming she could no longer afford basic needs with the N33,000 monthly allowance she received from the NYSC.

She lamented how prices of goods and services continued to skyrocket, recalling that a crate of eggs, which she once bought for N800, was selling for N6,500.

She further highlighted the financial burden of electricity and security bills, the high cost of transportation, and the deteriorating living conditions in the country.

Following the alleged threats to her life by NYSC officials, a human rights lawyer, Inebehe Effiong, came to her defence.

Effiong had dismissed the claims that the corps member has no rights as a citizen on national service to criticise the president or his government.

Some Nigerians argued that the NYSC Act and its Bye-Laws prohibited corps members from expressing dissenting views against the government or participating in partisan politics.

But in his defence of the corps member, Effiong cited that Section 2 of the NYSC Act defined national service as a mandatory one-year duty for eligible Nigerians, distinguishing it from federal or civil service employment.

The human rights lawyer further explained that corps members were not recruited or employed by the NYSC, and would not be issued employment letters after their service year.

He added that, instead, upon completion of their service, they receive a ‘certificate of national service’.