By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
A Federal High Court in Abuja has admitted political activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, to fresh bail in the sum of N200 million.
The fresh bail granted Sowore comes two weeks after the court revoked his earlier bail over his failure to appear for trial.
Justice Muhammad Umar granted the activist fresh bail in a ruling on Tuesday, June 30, and directed Sowore to provide two sureties before the bail could take effect.
The court directed that one of the sureties must be a traditional ruler from Sowore’s community, while the second must own landed property within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The judge also ordered the defendant to deposit his international passport with the court registrar pending the determination of the case.
After granting the application, Justice Umar handed Sowore over to his lawyers and adjourned further proceedings until Monday, July 6, when the defendant is expected to open his defence.
Sowore is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) on allegations bordering on cybercrime and criminal defamation, following social media posts made on August 25, 2025, in which he allegedly referred to President Bola Tinubu as “a criminal.”
The AAC presidential candidate denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
On June 26, the court revoked Sowore’s bail and issued a bench warrant for his arrest after he failed to attend proceedings.
Sowore had explained that he was unable to appear because of a prior engagement in Lagos and sought an adjournment, but the prosecution, led by Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), opposed the request, urging the court to proceed with the trial.
Following the revocation of his bail, Sowore challenged the bench warrant and sought the trial judge’s recusal.
The application was dismissed, after which he was remanded in the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of his fresh bail application.
At the hearing on June 24, Sowore, through his lawyer, R.O Adakole, filed an application seeking 12 reliefs, among which are an order setting aside the court’s June 16 order revoking his bail, an order vacating the bench warrant issued against him, and an order restoring the status quo and the earlier bail conditions.
The application were brought pursuant to Sections 35(4), 36(1), and 6(6)(a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), Sections 169 and 352 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, and the inherent jurisdiction of the court.
In his ruling on Tuesday, Justice Umar restored the defendant’s bail on fresh terms, requiring him to meet the N200 million bail bond and fulfil the conditions attached before regaining his freedom.
Reacting shortly after the ruling, Sowore described the bail conditions as part of the authorities’ continued efforts against him but insisted they would not deter his movement.
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 N200 million 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.”
