Monday, June 22, 2026 - Supporters of human rights activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, on Monday, accused operatives of the Department of State Services of forcefully arresting the activist despite an order remanding him in a correctional facility.
The allegation came shortly after Justice Mohammed Umar
ordered that Sowore be remanded in the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the
determination of his application seeking a stay of execution of an earlier
order revoking his bail.
The judge also dismissed an application by Sowore seeking
his recusal from the case on the grounds of alleged bias and adjourned the
matter until June 24 to hear the application for a stay.
Following the proceedings, Sowore’s supporters alleged that
DSS operatives forcefully seized him within the court premises, attempting to
take him away and injuring him in the process.
A live video streamed on his Facebook Page, Omoyele Sowore,
captured the moment an operative of the DSS grabbed him by the waist and
dragged him away, while other operatives prevented his loyalists from getting
to him.
His supporters had then rushed to the gates, stopping both
vehicles and people from entering or leaving the Federal High Court Complex.
The crowd insisted that the court had specifically ordered
his remand in a correctional facility, and not in the custody of the Nigeria
Police or the DSS.
FCT Chairman of the AAC, Agena Roberts Ande, condemned the
actions of the secret police, stating that the DSS must obey the law designed
by the government.
“Today we came to court, and as you rightly know, there was
an order from the court that Sowore should be provided in court. A bench
warrant was given, Sowore accepted, and came to court by himself. Nobody forced
him to come to court.
“And then a judgment was given that Sowore should be handed
to the Correctional Service. The DSS went behind and kidnapped Sowore in court,
even injuring him.
“That is why we all staged here and said no to that
impunity. We said the government that designed the rules must obey the rule. If
the court gives an order that Sowore should be given to the Correctional
Service centre, Sowore should not be given to the police or the DSS,” he said.
Speaking to pressmen earlier, Sowore had stated that he
wasn’t surprised by the remand order, adding that when he got out of prison, he
would face “these people” headlong.
“Nobody should be surprised. I have predicted before now
that all these things would happen. But they are happening for a good reason:
somebody must make the sacrifice that will liberate this country.
“I am going to prison, but I will be out. And when I am out,
I will be stronger, more ferocious, and face these people headlong. That is my
message to the Nigerian people,” he said.
The DSS is prosecuting Sowore over alleged criminal
defamation after he reportedly described President Bola Tinubu as “a criminal”
in posts on his X and Facebook accounts, an allegation to which the activist
had pleaded not guilty.
The court had, on June 16, revoked Sowore’s bail and issued
a bench warrant for his arrest after he failed to appear for the continuation
of his trial
Watch the video below:
DSS operatives violently 'abduct' activist SOWORE in Court despite order to remand him at correctional facility (VIDEO) pic.twitter.com/EIzjrHHe8V
— DAILY POST 🇳🇬 (@dailypost_ng) June 22, 2026
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