The Take It Back Movement has demanded the implementation of a N500,000 national minimum wage and sweeping reforms to address worsening insecurity, economic hardship and what it described as shrinking democratic space under the administration of President Bola Tinubu, while urging Nigerians to join a nationwide protest on August 5.

The movement, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu, said the planned demonstration, tagged the “Festival of the Oppressed,” would bring together workers, students, journalists, professionals, traders and other citizens to demand accountability and urgent action from the Federal Government.

The group alleged that insecurity had continued to worsen despite increased public spending on security, claiming that more than 200 Nigerians remain in the custody of kidnappers and armed groups, while communities across Borno, Zamfara, Katsina, Niger, Plateau, Oyo, Kaduna and Benue states continue to experience repeated attacks.

It also criticised the country’s economic situation, arguing that the removal of fuel subsidy in 2023 and the continued depreciation of the naira had pushed inflation to unprecedented levels, making food, transportation and other basic necessities increasingly unaffordable for millions of Nigerians.

According to the movement, the government has failed to address the country’s pressing socio-economic challenges and has instead intensified what it described as an assault on democratic freedoms.

It alleged that journalists, activists, students, labour organisers and other citizens have increasingly faced harassment, arrest and prosecution under the Cybercrime Act for exercising their constitutional rights to freedom of expression.

“The laws have become tools for silencing dissent and criminalising criticism of those in power,” the statement said.

The movement further expressed concern over what it described as political persecution, alleging that the continued detention and prosecution of political figures and critics reflected a shrinking democratic space.

It also called for improved welfare for public sector workers, including members of the armed forces, police, teachers, nurses and other civil servants, insisting that current salaries no longer reflect prevailing economic realities.

Among its demands are an end to insecurity and the rescue of all Nigerians held in captivity, the release of political detainees, the repeal of the Cybercrime Act, the implementation of a N500,000 national minimum wage, measures to reduce the cost of living, the withdrawal of charges against Omoyele Sowore, the removal of Femi Gbajabiamila and the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Tosin Ajayi, as well as stronger action against xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in other African countries.

The movement also called for the protection of Nigeria’s territorial sovereignty and resistance to what it described as foreign interference in the country’s affairs.

Describing the planned protest as more than a demonstration, the group said: “It represented our collective refusal to normalise hunger, fear, corruption, injustice and authoritarianism.”

It urged Nigerians to participate peacefully in the August 5 protest, insisting that sustained democratic pressure remained essential to securing political and economic reforms.

“Our demands are just. Our rights are non-negotiable. Our future must be reclaimed. Enough is enough,” the statement added.