Court grants bail to Sowore, Kanu’s Lawyer, and others

A Magistrate Court sitting in Kuje, Abuja, has granted bail to human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, and others arrested during a protest in the nation’s capital.

The presiding magistrate, Abubakar Umar Sai’id, ordered that Sowore and the other defendants be released on bail for the sum of ₦500,000 each.

Among those granted bail is Aloy Ejimakor, one of the disengaged counsel to the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu. Others include Emmanuel Kanu, Joshua Emmanuel, Wilson Anyalewechi, Okere Kingdom Nnamdi, Clinton Chimeneze, Gabriel Joshua, Isiaka Husseini, Onyekachi Ferdinand, Amadi Prince, Edison Ojisom, Godwill Obioma, and Chima Onuchukwu.

The court had earlier remanded Ejimakor and 11 others for allegedly “inciting public disturbance” during the protest that led to their arrest. The defendants were reportedly picked up at different locations across Abuja on Monday.

As part of the bail conditions, Magistrate Sai’id directed that each defendant must provide a verified National Identification Number (NIN), alongside a three-year tax clearance certificate and their international passports.

Sowore, who is also the publisher of Sahara Reporters, was arrested on Thursday shortly after leaving the premises of the Federal High Court in Abuja, where he had gone for a separate proceeding.

His arrest, which drew public outrage, was first made known by human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong, who condemned the action in a post on X. Effiong accused the police and the Tinubu administration of eroding the sanctity of the judiciary, describing the development as an assault on civil liberties.

The protest, which called for the release of detained IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, had earlier been warned against by the police. Despite the caution, Sowore reportedly insisted on exercising his constitutional right to peaceful demonstration, leading to his arrest alongside others.