Omoyele Sowore’s Detention: A Threat to National Journalism and Activism –Muhammad Bashir Abdulhafiz

There comes a time in the life of every nation when silence becomes complicity. For me, as a young Nigerian who believes in the promise of our great country, that time is now. The continued detention of Omoyele Sowore, an activist, a journalist, and the former presidential candidate is not just an attack on one man. It is an attack on every Nigerian who dares to speak truth to power.

For those who may not know, Omoyele Sowore is a Nigerian human rights activist, journalist, and politician. He founded Sahara Reporters in 2006, an online news platform dedicated to exposing corruption and holding public officials accountable. He has also been a two-time presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) and the convener of the #RevolutionNow movement. In short, Sowore is a man who has dedicated his life to fighting for a better Nigeria. A Nigeria where leaders are accountable, where corruption is exposed, and where the voices of ordinary citizens matter.

But today, that man sits in Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja. Not because he committed violence. Not because he stole public funds. Not because he posed any threat to national security. He is there because he exercised his constitutional right to speak his mind.

On June 16, 2026, Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja revoked Sowore’s bail and issued a bench warrant for his arrest after he failed to appear in court. The court subsequently ordered his remand at Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of his application challenging the revocation.

The charges against him? Cybercrime and criminal defamation. Specifically, Sowore is accused of describing President Bola Tinubu as a ‘criminal’ in social media posts shared on X and Facebook. For a post on social media particularly a statement of opinion, however strongly worded, a Nigerian citizen is now behind bars.

Let that sink in. Let us be honest with ourselves. This detention has nothing to do with justice and everything to do with silencing dissent. As Comrade Timi Frank, former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, rightly stated, Sowore’s arrest is ‘nothing but political victimisation and a desperate attempt to intimidate opposition leaders and silence voices of dissent in the country’.

The Federal Government, through the Department of State Services (DSS), is using the instruments of the state to punish a man for his words. This is not the Nigeria we fought for. This is not the democracy our heroes died for. Frank further argued that Sowore’s continued incarceration amounts to political victimisation and is part of a broader agenda to intimidate opposition figures, journalists, and civil society actors ahead of the 2027 general elections. Is it any coincidence that as elections draw nearer, critics of the government find themselves in handcuffs?

The pattern is clear. When you cannot win an argument, you jail the arguer. When you cannot defend your policies, you silence the critic. This is not governance, it is tyranny dressed in judicial robes. This is not the first time Sowore has been targeted. In 2019, he was arrested and charged with treasonable felony for calling for a #RevolutionNow protest. Amnesty International declared him a Prisoner of Conscience, and someone imprisoned solely for their beliefs or peaceful activism. The treason charges were eventually dropped in 2024, but the harassment did not stop.

Since then, Sowore has faced repeated arrests, prolonged detentions, and ongoing violations of his rights. He has been brutalised in custody, subjected to sham trials, and now, once again, locked up for speaking his mind.

How many times must one man be punished for loving his country? Amnesty International has demanded Sowore’s immediate and unconditional release, stating that his detention is linked to the peaceful expression of his views and criticism of public officials rights that are protected under Nigeria’s Constitution and international human rights agreements. The organisation warned that his continued detention risks undermining freedom of expression and will have a chilling effect on civil society organisations, journalists, and human rights defenders.

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has also called on the Federal Government to release Sowore and drop all charges, urging authorities to stop ‘weaponizing criminal defamation and cybercrime laws to target and attack journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders and activists’. Even the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC) has condemned the detention, demanding Sowore’s immediate release and calling for an independent investigation into reports that he was physically assaulted while in custody. When respected national and international organisations are raising the same alarm, it is time for the government to listen.

Let me ask every Nigerian reading this: What kind of country do we want to build? Do we want a Nigeria where citizens can freely express their opinions without fear of arrest? Or do we want a Nigeria where the government uses security agencies to silence anyone who disagrees with it? Do we want a Nigeria where the rule of law protects every citizen equally? Or do we want a Nigeria where the powerful can weaponise the courts against their critics?

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria guarantees freedom of expression. Criticising government policies does not amount to a criminal offence. If the government disagrees with Sowore’s views, it should respond with facts and good governance, not harassment and intimidation. As Timi Frank rightly said: ‘Is it not true that insecurity has worsened? Are Nigerians not facing unprecedented hardship? Why then should anyone be arrested for speaking the truth about the state of the nation?’ These are questions that demand answers.

To the Federal Government of Nigeria, I say this: Release Omoyele Sowore immediately and unconditionally. Drop all the charges against him. Stop using the instruments of the state to silence dissent. Focus your energy and resources on the real challenges facing this nation such as insecurity, economic hardship, crumbling infrastructure, and failing public services.

To the DSS and other security agencies, I say this: Remember your constitutional duty is to protect national security, not to persecute political opponents. The bandits and terrorists terrorising innocent Nigerians should be your priority, not activists exercising their fundamental rights.

To the judiciary, I say this: Remain impartial. Do not allow yourselves to be used as instruments of political persecution. Nigerians are watching, and history will judge every institution by the role it plays at this critical moment.

To my fellow young Nigerians, I say this: Do not be silent. Do not be intimidated. The fight for a better Nigeria belongs to all of us. If we allow the government to silence Sowore today, who will speak for us tomorrow? Omoyele Sowore is not a criminal. He is a patriot who has dedicated his life to fighting for transparency, accountability, and justice in Nigeria. His detention is a national disgrace and a dangerous assault on democracy.

The Nigeria we dream of is a Nigeria where every citizen can speak freely, where leaders are accountable, where justice is blind, and cannot be built in an atmosphere of fear and intimidation. We cannot claim to be a democracy while jailing citizens for their words. I call on the Federal Government to do the right thing. Release Omoyele Sowore. Drop the charges. And let us begin the difficult but necessary work of building the Nigeria we all deserve.

Muhammad Bashir Abdulhafiz wrote from Jos, and can be reached via abdulhafizmuhammad81@gmail.com instantly.