Former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has confronted officials of the Nigeria Police Force and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission after being prevented from entering the premises of the Federal High Court.
Sowore, who is also a human rights activist, challenged the officers, asserting that he was not former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, who is currently facing allegations of financial misappropriation. Despite attempts by security personnel to obstruct him, he resisted, insisting on his right to access the court.
In a video posted on his X handle, Sowore criticised the presence of multiple security agencies, including the Department of State Services, police, and civil defence, alleging that they had hijacked Nigeria’s justice system.
He accused them of illegally taking over the court premises due to the trial of Bello, whom he described as a “thief.” He further lambasted the authorities for failing to apprehend Bello when he was declared wanted, only managing to detain him after he voluntarily reported himself to the EFCC office in Abuja.
Addressing the security officials in the video, Sowore said, “Why are you shouting at me? Do I look like Yahaya Bello? I have business in court. I don’t need to be cleared by either the police or EFCC because none of you is an officer of the court.
“This is a Federal High Court; bring a court official, and I will talk to them. EFCC brought me to court, and they are still harassing us. You have no right to stand in front of the high court. You are not my lawyer and have no right to know my case.”
Sowore has had previous run-ins with security agencies. Recently, he alleged that the Nigeria Police Force planned to detain him over his criticism of the extension of Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun’s tenure.
Following a police invitation, the activist arrived at the Force Intelligence Headquarters at 9:58 am after posting a viral video exposing alleged extortion by officers at a checkpoint in Lagos.
Sowore was summoned to respond to various allegations, including resisting and obstructing public officers, disobedience to lawful orders, cyberstalking, and actions allegedly aimed at preventing arrests.
In a Facebook post, he claimed that the police relied on “rehashed information” sourced primarily from the internet to interrogate him.
