The 2020 #EndSARS Protests in Nigeria: Understanding How Perception Influences Government Approach to Civil Uprising in a Dictatorial State

Abstract Dictatorial regimes are known for their non-tolerance syndrome, including for peaceful protests. With manifest dictatorial tendencies, Nigeria, under the President Muhammadu Buhari, fiercely gagged the media and clamped on peaceful protests, believing them to be anti-government uprisings. Despite this repressive approach, the youths embarked on the #EndSARS protest to demand for police accountability. Although the movement could not achieve its desired objectives, it drew international attention to police brutality and unveiled how dictatorial perceptions deny even a democratic government an opportunity to retract its policy steps. This paper analyzes how the Nigerian state escalates its security problems through its perception of, and approach to, peaceful protests. Using data from field survey, acled and documentary media reports, this paper argues that Nigeria’s manifest dictatorial tendencies deny it the opportunity to take in protest demands to initiate pro-people policies that could address its security problems. The implication is that the security environment in the country continues to worsen.