Human rights activist and #RevolutionNow convener, Omoyele Sowore, has been re-arrested by the police shortly after fulfilling his bail conditions granted by the Kuje Magistrate Court in Abuja.
Sowore, who appeared in court on Friday alongside several others, was taken into custody again moments after his release was processed.
According to reports, Sowore and twelve others, including Prince Emmanuel Kanu, the younger brother of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, and a member of Kanu’s legal team, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, had earlier been granted bail. The court had set bail at ₦500,000 each, with two sureties residing within the Federal Capital Territory, who must present valid identification and provide evidence of three years of tax payment.
Despite meeting all the stipulated conditions, Sowore was intercepted by police officers immediately after the court proceedings and taken back into custody. Eyewitnesses at the scene described the re-arrest as sudden and unexpected, sparking concerns among his supporters about what they termed “a clampdown on dissenting voices.”
It was gathered that the activist’s re-arrest is linked to fresh allegations surrounding his recent comments about President Bola Tinubu. Sowore had reportedly accused the president of corruption and challenged the administration’s stance on several national issues, a move that authorities considered defamatory.
A senior police source confirmed to journalists that Sowore would be arraigned again on Monday, October 27, on new charges related to his recent statements. “The police acted on fresh information, and Sowore will face the law accordingly,” the source said.
This latest arrest has drawn criticism from several human rights groups who have described it as an attempt to silence activism in Nigeria. Sowore’s legal team, however, maintains that he has not violated any law and vowed to challenge his re-arrest in court.
