The federal
government is set to re-arraign Omoyele Sowore, convener of #RevolutionNow
Movement, on amended charges filed before a federal high court in Abuja.
Aminu Alilu, counsel
for the prosecution, told the court on Wednesday that the office of the
attorney-general of the federation (AGF) amended the previous charges against
Sowore and Olawale Bakare, his co-defendant.
“The office of the
AGF has taken over the matter and we have filed an amended charge,” he said.
He asked the court
for adjournment to enable him serve the charges on the defense.
In the previous
charge, Sowore and Bakare were arraigned on seven counts of treasonable felony,
fraud, cyber-stalking and insulting the president.
In the new charge
sheet obtained by TheCable, they are to stand trial on two counts of
treasonable felony.
The charges were
brought pursuant to section 516 of the Criminal Code Act, Cap. c38 Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Section 41(a) of the Criminal Code Act Cap C38
Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Count one of the
charge reads: “That you Omoyele Stephen Sowore, male, adult of No. 1, Mosafejo
Street, Kiribo, Ese-Odo LGA, Ondo State, Olawale Adebayo Bakare (A.K.A.
Mandate) male, Adult of Olaiya Area, Oshogbo L.G.A, Osun State and others at
large, under the aegis of Coalition for Revolution (CORE), sometimes in August
2019 in Abuja, Lagos and other parts of Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this
honourable court did conspire amongst yourselves to stage a revolution campaign
on 5th day of August 2019 tagged #RevolutionNow” aimed at removing the
President and commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the federal republic of
Nigeria during his term of office otherwise than by constitutional means.”
Meanwhile, Sowore
has complained that despite being released from custody of the Department of State
Services (DSS), he is still under “city arrest”.
One of the
conditions for bail imposed by Ijeoma Ojukwu, the trial judge, is that Sowore,
whom the DSS released on December 24, 2019, must not travel outside Abuja
without the permission of the court.
Meanwhile, the
activist told the court that he is yet to regain freedom.
“I don’t have a
house in Abuja. I am suffering. I am not free in this country. We were released
from one custody into another custody. I am under city arrest and that is
custody. I am still in custody of the state and that’s not fair,” he said.
Olumide Fusika,
Sowore’s counsel, corroborated his claims when he said if not for “the support
of well wishers, maybe he (Sowore) would be sleeping under a bridge”.
He said his client
has not seen his family since he was taken into custody in August 2019.
Ijeoma Ojukwu, the
judge, held that the office of the attorney general of the federation (AGF)
took over the prosecution of the case since December 2019, ought to have
amended the charges and serve the other party with the necessary documents.
She ordered the
prosecution to pay a fine of N200,000 to the defendants as consequences of
their “attempt to delay the trial”.
The case was
adjourned till Thursday.
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