Sowore incarceration: Ex-UN Diplomat Slams Nigeria Judiciary on Ruling

A former United Nations diplomat, Babafemi Badejo, has queried the recent judgement by the Federal High Court, Abuja, in granting permission to the Department of State Services to detain activist and convener of RevolutionNow movement, Omoyele Sowore, for a further 45 days.

Reacting to the judgment via his Twitteraccount, Badejo, who is also a lawyer, condemned the development, accusing Justice Taiwo Taiwo, who granted the ex-parte order of doing so in error.

He said, “Is a call for revolution in governance an act of terrorism? Is “may” in a terrorism act “directory” and not “discretionary” as expected especially in an ex-parte ruling?

“Human rights is on trial in Judge Taiwo’s ruling to detain Omoyele Sowore for 45 days,”

Justice Taiwo had on Thursday granted the DSS permission to detain Sowore for another 45 days after being approached by the security agency on Wednesday for the order.

But the judge postponed ruling till Thursday so as to have enough time to go through the evidence tendered by the DSS.

The secret police is accusing Sowore of terrorism after he called on Nigerians to take to the streets and protest against bad governance in the country.

The DSS had a few days to the start of the protest, arrested him in a Lagos hotel in the early hours of Saturday, keeping him in custody ever since despite growing calls for his release.