The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the arrest of activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, after he failed to appear in court for the continuation of his trial.
Sowore was expected to open his defence in a two-count charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) under the Cybercrimes Act, over a social media post in which he referred to President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal.” He had earlier chosen to represent himself after his legal team withdrew from the case.
At Tuesday’s resumed hearing, Sowore was absent from court, although he had sent a letter stating that he travelled to Lagos in search of new lawyers to defend him in the matter.
Following an application by the DSS, Justice Mohammed Umar revoked the bail earlier granted to him and issued a warrant for his arrest due to his non-appearance.
The court proceedings also recalled earlier developments in the case, including Sowore’s request that Justice Umar recuse himself over alleged bias, citing an incident in which his lawyer was reportedly ordered to kneel before the court. He also complained about what he described as intimidation and the judge’s decision to hear the matter on a day-to-day basis, which he said discouraged his legal team from continuing.
Sowore had pleaded not guilty when he was first arraigned on December 2, 2025, in a case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025. The charges allege that he used his verified X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook accounts on August 25, 2025, to publish messages describing President Tinubu as a “criminal,” which the DSS claims were false, capable of inciting disorder, and amounted to cyberstalking under Sections 24(1)(b) and 24(2)(a)-(c) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024.
The prosecution maintains that the posts were intended to cause a breakdown of law and order and damage the president’s reputation. Exhibits before the court include printouts of the social media posts and related correspondence from the DSS, while X Inc. (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc. were initially listed as co-defendants but were later removed from the amended charge.
Elijah Adeyemi
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