Nigeria, May 6 -- Public opinion, once the soul of democracy, is fast becoming an endangered concept in Nigeria. In his foundational text "Mass Communication: Theory and Practice", Professor Ifedayo Daramola defined public opinion as "the consensus or aggregate views held by the public on a burning issue or about a product, service, organization, individual or government." Today, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that consensus is being muffled, criminalized, and dismissed as noise.

Across democracies, public opinion serves as a compass for governance, a check on excesses and a guide for policy. But in Nigeria, dissent is increasingly treated as disloyalty. Criticism is no longer just unwelcome, it is met with propaganda, persecution, a...