A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday admitted human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, to a fresh bail in the sum of N200 million. The judicial decision came weeks after the court revoked his previous bail conditions over his failure to appear for the continuation of his trial.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Muhammad Umar ordered the defendant to provide two reliable sureties before regaining his freedom. The trial judge specified that one of the required sureties must be a recognized traditional ruler from the community of the activist, while the second person must be an owner of landed property located within the Federal Capital Territory. The court further directed the defendant to deposit his international passport with the court registrar pending the final determination of the criminal case.
Following the approval of the bail application, Justice Umar released Sowore to his legal representatives and adjourned the matter until Monday, July 6, 2026, when the defendant is expected to open his defence. The activist is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services on charges bordering on cybercrime. The prosecution alleged that the defendant made certain social media posts where he referred to President Bola Tinubu as a criminal. Sowore has denied the allegations and entered a plea of not guilty.
The trial court had on June 16 revoked the prior bail granted to the politician and issued a bench warrant for his arrest after he failed to show up for the scheduled proceedings. Although Sowore explained that his absence was due to an inevitable prior engagement in Lagos and asked for an adjournment, the prosecution counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, opposed the request and urged the court to proceed with the trial.
Following the revocation order, the activist challenged the validity of the bench warrant and filed an application seeking the recusal of the trial judge from the matter. The application was subsequently dismissed by the court, resulting in his remand at the Kuje Correctional Centre ahead of the hearing of his fresh bail application.
Reacting to the ruling shortly after the court session, Sowore described the new bail conditions as part of a sustained campaign by the authorities against him, though he maintained that the restrictions would not hinder his cause. He said, "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. They have always been after the passport. So nobody can come after our movement. Nobody can stop the movement. Nobody can stop the idea whose time has come. What I want to tell Nigerians is that it is not about my freedom; it is about the liberation of the Nigerian people."
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