The African Action Congress (AAC) party has formally requested an apology from President Bola Tinubu’s administration for its treatment of AAC’s 2023 presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, and his co-defendant, Olawale Bakare.
As previously reported by PurpleWorld, a Federal High Court in Abuja recently dismissed the charges of treason against AAC’s presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, and his co-defendant, Olawale Bakare.
The application of notice of discontinuance filed by the government, through the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, led to the court’s decision to dismiss the charges. This effectively ended the case against Sowore and Bakare.
In addition to dismissing the charges against Sowore and Bakare, the court also ordered the DSS to return the three mobile phones, passport, and N10,000 that were seized from Sowore. This decision was a significant win for the two men, who had been fighting for the return of their property for a long time.
In a statement released on Monday, the ACC National Publicity Secretary, Femi Adeyeye, said that in addition to returning Sowore’s property, the government must pay any monetary damages awarded to him and Bakare as a result of the case.
In the statement, Adeyeye stressed the importance of returning all seized property to Sowore, as well as making a public apology for the unjustified use of resources to persecute an innocent man who has dedicated his life to helping others. He emphasized that the government must take responsibility for its actions and ensure that this type of incident does not happen again.
The statement reads:
“The AAC acknowledges that today, on February 19, 2024, the treasonable felony case against our National Chairman, Omoyele Sowore, initiated by the Buhari regime, has been dismissed by the court after five years of their futile attempts at prosecution.
“It’s a victory scored by the Nigerian people that the case which has wandered in all the court rooms of the Federal High Court, Abuja has today been consigned to the annals of history. We wish to immensely appreciate the fiery and conscientious team of lawyers led by Femi Falana SAN. Special appreciation also goes to Nigerians home and abroad for their unflinching solidarity throughout.
“From the outset in 2019, the AAC anticipated a singular outcome, knowing that the exercise of human rights, particularly freedom of expression under section 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, should not face unwarranted legal persecution.
“Echoing our Chairman’s belief that no judge can prosecute a just cause of history, today’s court proceedings, again validate our stance that the defence of of our human rights is non-negotiable.
The Nigerian government is therefore urged to stop undermining the freedom of the Nigerian people by suppressing the right of the citizens to freedom of expression.
“Having seen the Nigerian government witness an embarrassing day in court today, we implore the government to learn from history and refrain from unjustly targeting voices against power, a trend followed since the days of Ken Saro Wiwa, Wole Soyinka,, Fela Anikulapo, Chima Ubani, and Gani Fawehinmi.
“We want to restate that Mr Omoyele Sowore and his co-defendant, Olawale Bakare must be apologized to. The Tinubu regime must paid all damages they won at different times in this matter. All property seized returned to them and ultimately, the combination of the two unfortunate regimes- Buhari and Tinubu must apologize to the Nigerian people for wasting their resources on persecuting an innocent man who has continued to stand for the people.
“The AAC party, being a people-centred party, pledge our commitment to free speech, being the cornerstone of democracy, and we encourage Nigerians all over to never be afraid of calling out erring governments at all levels.”