The men, identified as Baba Aji Gremami, 44; Mustapha Abba Yemen, 28; Abbacha Mohammed Ali, 32; Adam Umar Gubio, 21; and Abdulhamid Mohammed, 21, were accused of offences including criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance, disturbance of public peace and thuggery.
A First Information Report (FIR) dated September 29, 2026, issued by the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Maiduguri, and addressed to the Chief Magistrate Court, Maiduguri, detailed the allegations against the five men.
According to the FIR, the suspects allegedly conspired to print T-shirts bearing the inscription “Tinubu Must Go” with the intention of causing a breach of public peace around the West End Roundabout community in Maiduguri.
The police said the alleged offences contravened Sections 60, 78, 79 and 392 of the Borno State Penal Code.
The FIR stated that the suspects allegedly committed the offence on September 25, 2026, at about 11:00 a.m., by printing the T-shirts and displaying the inscription with the alleged intent to cause a breach of public peace.
The officer in charge subsequently directed that the matter be taken to court.
A source who spoke to SaharaReporters alleged that the arrests followed a directive by Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, to the state Commissioner of Police, CP Naziru Abdulmajid, over the T-shirts.
The source further said the five men were taken before a court and subsequently remanded in a correctional facility.
The arrests come amid heightened political activity ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections. Governor Zulum recently returned from a trip to the United States and Canada and launched an All Progressives Congress (APC) mobilisation campaign in Borno State in support of President Bola Tinubu and other party candidates.
The “Tinubu Must Go” slogan has featured in protests and political demonstrations in Nigeria.
In this case, however, the police FIR specifically links the allegations against the five men to the printing and wearing of the T-shirts, alleging that the action was intended to cause a breach of public peace.
SaharaReporters reported that it could not immediately establish details of the court proceedings or the specific terms of the remand order.