ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the arrest of activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, following his failure to appear in court for the continuation of his cybercrime trial.
Sowore was scheduled to open his defence against a two-count cybercrime charge filed by the Department of State Services over social media posts in which he described President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “criminal.”
The activist had elected to represent himself after his legal team withdrew from the matter. However, when proceedings resumed on Tuesday, Sowore was absent from court.
He instead sent a letter explaining that he had travelled to Lagos in search of new lawyers to handle his defence.
Acting on an application by the DSS, Justice Mohammed Umar revoked the bail earlier granted to the defendant and issued a warrant for his arrest.
Before the latest development, Sowore had requested that Justice Umar withdraw from the case and return the file to the Chief Judge for reassignment.
He based the application on provisions of Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, alleging judicial bias.
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According to Sowore, his concerns stemmed from an incident in which one of his lawyers was allegedly ordered to kneel before the court.
He further claimed that his legal team became uncomfortable with the court’s decision to conduct proceedings on a day-to-day basis and what he described as the judge’s high-handed approach.
“My lawyers indicated to me that they are afraid to appear before you and will no longer appear because of the humiliation they suffered before this court,” Sowore stated in his application.
“Pending the time I am able to reconstitute a new legal team, I shall be representing myself before your lordship,” he added.
Sowore was arraigned on December 2, 2025, in a case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025, where he pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The charges, brought under Sections 24(1)(b) and 24(2)(a), (b) and (c) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024, relate to social media posts he made on August 25, 2025.
The posts were reactions to President Tinubu’s remarks in Brazil that his administration had eliminated corruption in Nigeria. Following the publication, the DSS reportedly requested that X (formerly Twitter) and Meta remove the content and suspend Sowore’s accounts. The agency also directed him to delete the posts from all platforms.
According to the prosecution, Sowore’s refusal to comply led to the criminal charges. The DSS contends that the posts were knowingly false, capable of causing a breakdown of law and order, and intended to damage the President’s reputation.
Evidence tendered by the prosecution includes printed copies of the social media posts and official correspondence from the DSS.
Although X and Meta were initially listed as co-defendants, they were subsequently removed from the amended charge, leaving Sowore as the sole defendant in the case.