An Abuja Federal High Court on Tuesday granted activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore fresh bail in the sum of N200 million. This decision comes weeks after his previous bail was revoked due to his failure to appear for trial.
Justice Muhammad Umar, in his ruling, stipulated that Sowore must provide two
sureties. One surety must be a traditional ruler from his community, and the second must own landed property within the Federal Capital Territory.
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Additionally, Sowore is required to deposit his international passport with the court registrar until the case concludes.
After granting the application, Justice Umar released Sowore into the custody of his lawyers and adjourned proceedings until Monday, July 6, when Sowore is expected to begin his defence.
Sowore faces prosecution by the Department of State Services on cybercrime allegations, stemming from social media posts where he allegedly referred to President Bola Tinubu as “a criminal.”
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He has pleaded not guilty to these charges.
His initial bail was revoked on June 16, and a bench warrant issued for his arrest, after he failed to attend
court. Sowore attributed his absence to a prior engagement in Lagos and requested an adjournment. However, the prosecution, led by Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), opposed this request, urging the court to proceed with the trial.
Following the bail revocation, Sowore challenged the bench warrant and sought the trial judge’s recusal.
After this application was dismissed, he was remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of his fresh bail application.
In Tuesday’s ruling, Justice Umar reinstated Sowore’s bail under new terms, requiring him to meet the N200 million bail bond and fulfill the attached conditions to regain his freedom.
Reacting to the ruling, Sowore characterized the bail conditions as part of ongoing efforts against him, but affirmed they would not hinder his
activism. He stated, “There is no bus on earth that can stop this revolution. We warned them, but they would not listen. But now, it appears a little bit of common sense is returning to them, and as a result, I was granted bail, requiring a traditional ruler, somebody with property in Abuja, and N200m and my international passport.”
