African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate and human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of using state institutions to silence dissent, weaken opposition voices and reward political loyalists while persecuting critics who refuse to compromise their principles.
Speaking during an interview on Symfony TV with journalist Olawale Oluwade, Sowore described his ongoing cybercrime trial instituted by the Department of State Services (DSS) over his alleged description of President Tinubu as a “criminal” as a politically motivated prosecution aimed at suppressing free speech.
According to him, Nigeria’s political system rewards individuals who eventually align themselves with those in power, irrespective of their previous attacks on the government, while those who remain steadfast in their convictions are treated as enemies of the state.
“What you need to do in Nigeria to become a victim is simply to do what is right and remain consistent,” Sowore said.
He cited former presidential aide Reno Omokri and former Minister of Aviation Femi Fani-Kayode as examples of individuals who had once made harsh criticisms of Tinubu but later became accepted by the political establishment.
“The people who said worse things about Tinubu eventually played the game and were rewarded. Those of us who refuse to be part of the rot and ruination of the nation become the villains,” he stated.
Sowore insisted that the charges against him were legally baseless, arguing that he was being prosecuted under an amended Cybercrime Act for what he described as a non-existent offence.
He maintained that his current ordeal was part of a long history of state persecution dating back to his days as a student activist at the University of Lagos.
According to him, he was expelled twice during the military regimes of Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Sani Abacha because of his activism.
He further recalled that after completing the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme in 1996, he was arrested before collecting his discharge certificate.
“I have never received my NYSC certificate till today because I was arrested before collecting it,” he said.
Sowore said the campaign against him continued while he lived abroad through what he described as Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) arising from investigative reports published by Sahara Reporters.
He alleged that the hostility intensified after his return to Nigeria in 2019 to contest the presidential election and establish the Sahara Reporters Media Foundation in Ikeja.
Recalling previous legal battles, Sowore noted that he was charged with treason and cybercrime in 2019 over alleged insults directed at former President Muhammadu Buhari.
He also alleged that the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, instituted four separate criminal cases against him in 2025, including cybercrime charges.
According to him, successive administrations have consistently targeted his freedom of movement, speech and association because of the influence of his activism.
Sowore identified the DSS as the complainant in his current cybercrime case, arguing that the agency lacks the legal authority to institute such proceedings on behalf of President Tinubu.
He contended that the Cybercrime Act requires the allegedly offended individual to personally file the complaint, adding that a similar case involving former President Buhari was previously dismissed after his legal team challenged the competence of the prosecution.
“They simply keep filing fresh cases whenever the previous ones collapse, hoping that one will eventually stick,” he said.
The activist further alleged that President Tinubu was deploying the judiciary and other state institutions to cripple opposition parties ahead of future elections.
According to him, while some opposition parties face internal crises allegedly fuelled by the government, parties with clear ideological differences such as the AAC have their leadership subjected to criminal prosecutions.
He described his trial as “complete political persecution.”
Sowore also accused the trial judge of bias, alleging that the court had repeatedly frustrated his defence.
He claimed that one of his lawyers, Marshal Abubakar, was ordered to kneel while presenting evidence, prompting his legal team to seek the judge’s recusal over alleged bias.
According to him, both the application and a subsequent appeal to the Chief Judge seeking the judge’s removal were unsuccessful.
Sowore disclosed that his legal team intends to summon President Tinubu as a witness but alleged that the court was attempting to prevent that from happening by asking the defence to close its case.
Expressing little confidence in the judiciary, Sowore said he had never expected justice from Nigerian courts.
“I have never been under the illusion that I will get justice in a Nigerian court. We exist in what I call the Federal Republic of Injustice,” he declared.
He lamented that although earlier treason charges against him were eventually withdrawn after years of litigation, no apology was offered despite the restrictions imposed on his liberty, including the seizure of his passport and limitations on his movement for nearly five years.
Sowore also spoke on the recent detention of journalist Zainab Sodiq by the DSS after she attempted to retrieve one of his passports and travelled with his commercial drone.
He alleged that although the agency initially claimed interest in the drone, its real objective was to obtain his passport.
According to him, Sodiq was later invited by the DSS to recover the drone but was instead detained for several hours, with officials allegedly citing his social media criticism of the agency as justification.
“They admitted they were holding her because I described them as lawless,” Sowore alleged, adding that her mobile phones were confiscated and never returned.
He described the DSS as “an absolutely lawless organisation.”
On the recent rescue of abducted pupils, teachers and the principal in the Oriire kidnapping incident, Sowore welcomed their freedom but argued that the government should be held accountable for failing to prevent the abduction in the first place.
He said his movement sustained public pressure throughout the victims’ 56-day captivity and lamented that many other kidnapped children across states such as Borno and Kwara remain in captivity.
Responding to suggestions that President Tinubu had merely been overwhelmed by the challenges of governance, Sowore dismissed the claim.
“I don’t think he was overwhelmed. From the beginning, he was not competent to do the job,” he said.