The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has upturned the ruling of the Federal High Court confining human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) since August 2019.

A three-man panel led by Justice Tsammani made the judgement on Wednesday.

Operatives of the Department of State Services had arrested Sowore in the early hours of August 3, 2019 for calling on Nigerians to take to the streets in peaceful demonstrations to demand a better country from the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The activist was kept in unlawful detention from that period until December 5, 2019 when he was finally released on bail despite two court orders earlier sanctioning his freedom.

In a twist of event, DSS operatives invaded the Federal High Court in Abuja on December 6, 2019 to rearrest him without any court order.

He remained in unlawful detention until 18 days later when he was released by the secret police for the second time.

 

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The trial judge, Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu, had granted Sowore N100million bail with two sureties who must be residents of Abuja and have landed properties within the Federal Capital Territory.

The judge also ordered that one of the sureties must deposit N30million with the court pending the determination of the case.

Sowore was also restricted to the Federal Capital Territory pending the determination of the case.

The activist however, approached the Appeal Court over the stringent bail conditions especially his restriction to Abuja.

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Ada Grace

Ihesiulo Grace Amarachi AKA Ada Ada, is an accomplished broadcast journalist with over a decade of experience in the industry. Known for her incisive reporting and dynamic on-air presence, Grace has covered major national and international events, from political elections to natural disasters. She holds a degree in Journalism from Ghana institute of Journalism Accra, Ghana. Currently, she serves as the Head of Online Department DailyTimesNGR, State House Corespondent Villa, And is the CEO of Adaeventsnews, where she continues to deliver impactful stories with accuracy and integrity. Off-camera, Grace is an advocate for media literacy and mentors aspiring journalists.

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