On 27 January Nigerian human rights activist Omoyele Sowore was detained at the offices of the Nigerian Police Intelligence Response Team in Abuja after he refused to accept bail on the terms offered to him by the police.
The Inspector General of Police filed 17 charges relating to cybercrime against Sowore after the pro-democracy campaigner called the Inspector General an “illegal IG” on the grounds that he had exceeded the mandatory retirement age. But, in filing the charges, police had misspelt Sowore’s name and written “insight” when they meant “incite”.
This followed the posting by Sowore of a video drawing attention to extortion by police officers on duty at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Access Road, Lagos. However, according to SaharaReporters, a media outlet founded by Sowore himself, the arrest was not a consequence of Sowore posting the video. It was due to the personal grudge which the Inspector General has against Sowore.
SaharaReporters have also stated that on January 13 this year the Inspector General changed his official retirement date on the senior officers’ staff list so that it now reads “October 31, 2027”.
On the matter of refusing bail, Secular Advocacy TV have quoted Sowore as saying, “in accepting ‘bail’, I will not agree to conditions that compromise my innocence, dignity, and integrity. If such unreasonable conditions are imposed, I will choose to remain in detention”.