Human rights activist, Deji Adeyanju, believes President Muhammadu Buhari will not condemn reports of police brutality in America because he has supervised repression and killings of Nigerian protesters agitating for their rights.
Adeyanju spoke with SaharaReporters on Tuesday while reacting to the silence of the President on the killing of George Floyd.
Floyd, an African-America, lost his life after a police officer, Derek Chauvin on May 25 in Minneapolis knelt on his neck for over eight minutes despite Floyd telling him he could not breathe. 
Chauvin had since been charged with third-degree murder and will appear in court next week.
Three other police officers linked to the incident have been fired.
Adeyanju said if millions of Nigerians bombarded the street to protest against police brutality as done in America, no security agency would be able to suppress their voices.
He said, “It would be laughable if President Buhari dares condemn any extrajudicial killings because he has supervised killings time and time again of Nigerian protesters, the Shiites, IPOB members etc. The police daily kill citizens, it is like a recurring decimal here.
“It is like the Buhari regime has legalised the extrajudicial killings of citizens. He cannot condemn such an act. You may be shocked Buhari would be rejoicing because they’ve got a template, saying it is not only in Nigeria and that it is happening in a developed country like the US.
“For me, I believe this is good news to Buhari and the presidency. This is their regular trademark so nobody should expect any condemnation from them and Buhari himself wouldn’t dare because he would be a laughing stock to the world.”
Adeyanju said Nigerians are not protesting like their American counterparts because they have been pushed to the point of accepting and normalising what is abnormal because of constant human rights abuse.
Another reason, according to him, was that over the years there had been a betrayal of trust and confidence by the people and activists leading the struggle.
He said, “That is why the people themselves must lead the struggle. They should not wait for people to come out and lead them. Just as in America, the people do not tolerate injustice and any form of abuse of their rights so Nigerians should learn from Americans and fellow African countries like Sudan, Tunisia and Lebanon.
“Our people are not willing to demand what is right and those who do so are seen as abnormal ones. The constitution already said sovereignty lies with the people from where the government derives all the power.
“The people are greater than the government and the people need to realize that. It’s about Nigerians knowing fully well that the real power belongs to them. Nigerians should realize that they are the reason the government exists.”
