A former presidential candidate and publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, was on Tuesday arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja by the Department of State Services over alleged cybercrime offences linked to a social media post in which he described President Bola Tinubu as a criminal.
Sowore was docked on a five count charge of criminal defamation under the Cybercrimes Prohibition, Prevention and Amendment Act 2024. Meta Platforms Incorporated and X Corporation formerly known as Twitter were also joined as co defendants in the suit.
The DSS alleged that Sowore published false and defamatory statements against the President through posts on his verified accounts on X and Facebook.
Earlier efforts to arraign Sowore had failed as the matter was adjourned twice. In November, counsel to the DSS, Akinolu Kehinde SAN, had sought a bench warrant against the defendant over his absence but the presiding judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, declined the request.
At the resumed hearing on Tuesday, Sowore’s counsel, Marshal Abubakar, challenged the competence of the charge, relying on a preliminary objection already filed before the court. However, Kehinde opposed the objection, describing it as premature and a deliberate attempt to delay trial.
The prosecution relied on Section 396 subsection three of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and urged the court to take the defendant’s plea first.
Justice Umar upheld the argument of the prosecution and directed that the defendant be arraigned. Sowore pleaded not guilty to all five counts.
Following his plea, Abubakar applied for bail and urged the court to admit the defendant on self recognition or on liberal terms. He described Sowore as a responsible citizen who was ready to submit himself to trial.
“My Lord, the defendant is a law abiding citizen and a two time presidential candidate. Only three days ago, he won an election as chairman of a major political party, the African Action Congress. His international passport is already with the court,” the lawyer told the judge.
The DSS opposed the bail application through a 40 paragraph counter affidavit, arguing that Sowore had previously breached court orders and could commit a similar offence if released.
Lawyers representing X and Meta did not oppose the bail application.
In his ruling, Justice Umar admitted Sowore to bail on self recognition but warned him against making statements capable of threatening national unity and peace.
The judge added that the bail would be revoked if the defendant made comments that could be deemed prejudicial to national security.
The case was adjourned to January 19, 2026, for the commencement of trial.
