BREAKING: Nigerian Police Invite Sowore Again Days After Two-Day Detention As Activist Heads To Force Headquarters
The Nigeria Police Force has once again invited human rights activist Omoyele Sowore for questioning.
Sowore — activist, journalist, convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, and former presidential candidate — was on his way to the Force Headquarters in Abuja to honour the invitation.
This marks the second time in a week that Sowore will be meeting with the police at their request.
Last Experience Ended In Two-Day Detention
On Wednesday, August 6, 2025, Sowore similarly honoured a police invitation in Abuja, flanked by his legal team and a handful of supporters.
He had been invited by the Inspector General of Police’s Monitoring Unit to respond to two petitions: one accusing him of cyberbullying, the other alleging he had forged a police document. Sowore, known for his defiant stance against state oppression, honoured the invitation without hesitation.
But what began as a routine engagement quickly spiraled into a confrontation with the Nigerian police.
Upon arrival, Sowore requested to see the petitions before making any statement. His lawyers insisted on due process. The police, however, refused to provide the documents up front. Tensions escalated. By evening, Sowore was no longer a guest, he was a detainee.
The next day, Thursday, SaharaReporters exclusively reported that Sowore had been assaulted while resisting a forced transfer to court without his lawyers and his clothes.
Following the assault, he sustained an injury to his right hand. He alleged that police officers denied him access to medical care and kept him incommunicado. Amnesty International swiftly condemned the detention and demanded his immediate release, calling the treatment “a gross violation of human rights.”
As news of the injury spread, so did outrage. Activists, civil society groups, and political figures rallied in protest. Demonstrations erupted in Abuja, Lagos, Osun, and Oyo.
The Take It Back Movement, Youth Rights Campaign, Ohanaeze Youth Council, and many other groups, lawyers, and activists issued statements denouncing the arrest as politically motivated. Even opposition leaders like Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar weighed in, describing the detention as “an abuse of state power.”
The protests were loud, persistent, and unrelenting. Placards bore slogans like “Free Sowore Now!” and “Stop Police Brutality!”
Social media buzzed with hashtags demanding justice. The pressure mounted.
Then, on Friday evening, August 8, after over 48 hours in custody, Sowore was released. He emerged from detention with his arm in a sling but his voice unshaken. In a live broadcast on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), he thanked his supporters but refused to celebrate.
“The Nigeria Police Force and its illegal IGP have capitulated to the demands of the revolutionary movement,” he declared. “I have been released from unjust, unwarranted & unlawful detention. However, it is nothing to celebrate… You’ve all seen the power of unity.”
