Political censorship and Democratic consolidation in Nigeria: Examining the effects of Internet shutdowns and State repression on Freedom of speech (2015–2025)

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between political censorship and democratic consolidation in Nigeria between 2015 and 2025, with particular attention to internet shutdowns and state repression affecting freedom of speech. The study adopts a qualitative documentary research design in which secondary sources were systematically identified and screened using the PRISMA 2020 framework, yielding 83 documents drawn from peer-reviewed literature, Freedom House, Paradigm Initiative, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Media Defence, and Nigerian government publications. The data were analysed using Braun and Clarke's six-phase thematic analysis and interpreted through Digital Authoritarianism Theory. Four themes emerged: internet restrictions as instruments of political control, legal repression and the criminalisation of online speech, national security as a justification for censorship, and the shrinking of digital civic space. The findings show that political censorship in Nigeria has increasingly assumed digital forms, intensifying during protests, elections, and periods of heightened criticism of government, and that these measures have encouraged self-censorship and reduced public participation. The study concludes that political censorship constitutes a significant obstacle to democratic consolidation, because restrictions on digital communication weaken citizens' capacity to participate freely in political discourse and hold public officials accountable.