Former presidential candidate and human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, has described the Nigeria Police Force as an “irresponsible organisation” that routinely takes laws into its own hands, following his release from detention on Friday after meeting his bail conditions.
Speaking after regaining freedom alongside 12 others, including Nnamdi Kanu’s lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, and his brother, Emmanuel Kanu, Sowore said the police acted outside their constitutional mandate by enforcing a court order in which they had vested interest.
“If a court gives an order and there’s a contravention of that order, you go back to the same court to complain to the judge. It’s not the job of the police to take it upon itself to enforce a court order that it has interest in,” Sowore said.
“Even if they don’t have interest, the right thing is still to go back to court. The police, being an irresponsible organisation in Nigeria, took laws into its own hands,” he added.
Sowore maintained that the police never served him or others with any restraining order before carrying out the arrest, accusing the security agency of deliberate impunity and disregard for due process.
“I can guarantee you that those court orders were never served on us. If you look at the schedule of the court order, it says serve them by Friday. No order was served,” Sowore insisted.
“Even if it was, our courts understand there are certain boundaries you cannot cross when it comes to fundamental human rights.”
Reacting to reports that his prolonged detention stemmed from his description of the Inspector General of Police as “useless,” Sowore said his statement was a justified critique of a failed system.
“Was I wrong? The justice system itself is useless when you see what happened — people beaten, brutalised, denied access to lawyers,” he said.
“This is not the first time. There have been countless police attacks on me since 1992. Ironically, some of the same officers who brutalised me in the past had to fight for their retirement benefits recently.”
He added that the recurring persecution by the police would not deter him from his activism.
“Those attacking us today will also meet their Waterloo soon. But we’re not distracted. Our goal is to fix this country, not to trade words with individuals or agencies,” Sowore said.
He dismissed attempts by police spokespersons to defend the crackdown, saying they lacked understanding of their roles in a democratic setting.
“I cannot be bandying words with a police PRO who doesn’t know his left from his right, or with an IGP who’s no longer even a legitimate officer,” he said.
“I’ve lived under about seven presidents and several IGPs since 1992. Some I’ve even had to assist while in office. So, this isn’t new to me. Anyone doing what I do knows that your second vacation home is prison.”
Sowore also took aim at President Bola Tinubu, criticising his handling of national security and the appointment of service chiefs.
He specifically referenced the former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, who had once proposed building fences around Nigeria’s borders.
“I was the first to complain about that one who said they wanted to fence Nigeria — Musa. That one doesn’t know his left from his right,” Sowore said.
“He should have been fired if Tinubu were serious. But honestly, I don’t care what Tinubu does with his illegitimate regime.”
The activist reiterated his resolve to continue challenging injustice and authoritarianism, warning that Nigeria was sliding deeper into repression.
“We cannot fix a country by obeying illegal orders or bowing to tyranny. Our mission remains the same — to build a just, free, and accountable Nigeria,” he said.
Sowore, who has faced repeated arrests and prosecution since 2019 over his “#RevolutionNow” campaign, vowed to pursue legal redress for the latest incident, describing it as part of a broader effort to silence dissenting voices under the Tinubu administration.
