The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday shifted the arraignment of Omoyele Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters to 5 November.
The matter, which was scheduled for Sowore and his co-defendants to enter their pleas, could not proceed due to the absence of Justice Mohammed Umar in court.
Justice Umar, who is the trial judge, was said to be sitting in another division of the court.
The court subsequently set 5 November for the arraignment of Sowore and X Incorp. (formerly Twitter) and Meta (Facebook) Inc. listed as 1st to 3rd defendants respectively.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the judge had, on 30 September, fixed today to afford Sowore adequate facility to prepare for his defence.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Sowore, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in 2019 and 2023, is facing a five-count charge.
The charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025, was dated 16 September.
The Department of State Services (DSS), on the Federal Government’s behalf, had sued Sowore, X Incorp. (formerly Twitter) and Meta (Facebook) Inc. as 1st to 3rd defendants respectively.
Sowore was alleged to have made a false claim against the person of President Bola Tinubu by referring to him as ‘a criminal’, on his Twitter and Facebook accounts.
The charge was filed a few days after an earlier request by the DSS for the alleged defamatory message posted by Sowore on his Facebook and X handles to be taken down.
In the charge, Sowore is accused of contravening the provisions of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024.
Count one of the charge alleged that Sowore, on or about 25 August, did use his official X handle page, @Yele Sowore, to send out a message/tweet.
The message is said to be, ‘This criminal @ official PBAT actually went to BRAZIL to state that there is no more corruption under his regime in Nigeria. What audacity to lie shamelessly audacity to lie shamelessly!’
The message, which he knew to be false, was posted ‘for the purpose of causing a breakdown of law and order in the country, especially among individuals, who hold divergent views on the personality of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR)’.
The offence is said to be contrary to Section 24 (1) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024, among other counts.
