Court Frees Sowore on Fresh N200m Bail
A Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday admitted Omoyele Sowore, presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, to a fresh bail of N200 million, weeks after revoking his earlier release over his failure to appear for trial in the defamation case brought against him by the Department of State Services.
Justice Mohammed Umar, ruling on Sowore’s application for stay of execution of the bail revocation order, vacated both the revocation and the earlier order remanding the activist at Kuje Correctional Centre. He then handed Sowore over to his lawyers and adjourned the matter to July 6 for the defendant to open his defence.
The judge attached strict conditions. He directed that Sowore produce two sureties, one of whom must be a traditional ruler from his community, while the second must own landed property in Abuja. Both sureties are to be verified by the prosecution. Sowore was also ordered to deposit his international passport with the court’s deputy chief registrar pending determination of the case.
The DSS is prosecuting Sowore, who also publishes Sahara Reporters, over allegations that he made false claims against President Bola Tinubu by describing him as “a criminal” in posts on his X and Facebook accounts. He was arraigned in December 2025, pleaded not guilty, and was initially granted bail on self-recognition.
The case took a sharp turn on June 16, when Justice Umar revoked that bail and issued a bench warrant after Sowore failed to attend a scheduled sitting. His lawyer had written ahead of the proceedings citing a prior engagement in Lagos, but counsel for the DSS, Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), opposed the adjournment and applied for the revocation, which the court granted.
Sowore voluntarily returned to court on June 22 to challenge the order and to seek the judge’s withdrawal from the case on grounds of alleged bias. Justice Umar dismissed the recusal request, held that no sufficient grounds had been established, and ordered the activist remanded at Kuje pending the ruling delivered on Tuesday.
The latest proceedings have drawn sustained protest. Civil society groups gathered at the court demanding his release, and the Take It Back Movement, in a statement by its national coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu, faulted the bail terms as “punitive, oppressive and excessive,” arguing that the conditions bore “no reasonable relationship” to securing his attendance. Reacting after the ruling, Sowore struck a defiant note, saying, “There is no bus on earth that can stop this revolution.”
The episode fits a long pattern. Sowore was first arrested by the DSS on August 3, 2019, ahead of the planned #RevolutionNow protest, and was charged with treasonable felony, money laundering, and cybercrime. He spent 143 days in detention that year amid repeated bail disputes, including an incident in which DSS operatives stormed an Abuja courtroom to re-arrest him a day after his release. The Federal Government eventually withdrew the treasonable felony charge in February 2024, and the court discharged him on that count.
The 1999 Constitution, in Section 39, guarantees freedom of expression, while Section 45 permits restrictions justifiable in a democratic society. With Tuesday’s ruling, attention now shifts to July 6, when the prosecution and defence are expected to advance their arguments in the substantive trial.