The Federal Government has filed a nolle prosequi to discontinue the treason charges filed against activists and publishers of SaharaReporters, Omoyele Sowore, and Olawale Bakare, alias Mandate.
A copy of the nolle prosequi (notice of discontinuance) sighted by reporters on Thursday was signed by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
According to the stamp on the document, it was received by the Federal High Court in Abuja on 15 February 2024.
In the document titled ‘Notice of Discontinuance’, the AGF wrote: “By virtue of the power conferred on me under Section 174 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, Section 107 (1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and all other powers enabling me in that behalf, I, Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, SAN, intend to discontinue Charge No: FHC/ABI/CR/235/2019”.
The charges were filed against Sowore and Mandate in 2019 in the wake of a botched nationwide protest they tagged “Revolution Now”.
The administration of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari said the protest was aimed at destabilising the government or taking over power by violence after Sowore, who was the candidate of the African Action Congress, lost out in the 2019 presidential election that Buhari won.
Ahead of the planned ‘Revolution Now’ protest, Sowore and Mandate were arrested in a midnight raid in Lagos by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS)
Following their arraignment, Sowore and Mandate were restricted to Abuja.
On Wednesday, Justice Emeka Nwite, who is handling the matter, threatened to strike out the charges for lack of diligent prosecution.
Reacting to the nolle prosequi on Thursday, Sowore, in a statement on his Facebook page, slammed Buhari for what he described as his “idiosyncratic treason trial”.
He said, “Five years ago, the Federal Government of Nigeria commenced a fruitlessly malicious, tendencious and idiosyncratic treason trial (persecution) against me, Olawale Adebayo Bakare (aka MANDATE) and several other revolutionary comrades across Nigeria.
“We stood our ground and began a historic journey to liberate our country, despite threats, assassination of family members, state-sponsored violence and targeted attacks by security forces; we promised never to back down. Today, we have been vindicated on one front, the Nigerian government has terminated its own case against me, but we will not terminate our struggle for justice and liberty of our compatriots.
“We warned the @MBuhari regime and those who followed his ruinous path that they will face ultimate disgrace before long. We salute our revolutionary comrades”.
He told The PUNCH that he planned to institute a N100 billion lawsuit against the Federal Government for alleged malicious prosecution.
According to him, the N100 billion would cover the “time and resources, mental and financial trauma caused his person, businesses, his wife and children, and his extended family, and the alleged assassination of his younger brother, Olajide Sowore in 2021”.
Sowore said, “I’m not supposed to be congratulated because the Federal Government has now decided to discontinue the symbolic treasonable felony case against me. I didn’t commit any crime, they only decided to waste my time and the resources of the country.
“But we’re not giving up. I will sue the Federal Government of Nigeria and the DSS for N100 billion as compensation for the cost of time and resources, mental and financial trauma that they caused my person, my businesses, my wife and children, and my extended family, and also for the assassination of my brother, Olajide Sowore during this five-year period that I was abducted, detained, and now confined to Nigeria while they seized my passport.
“The Federal Government must also pay the N3 million that was awarded to me by the court as compensation, during the course of the trial. And the DSS must return my passport and my mobile phones that were seized after I was arrested and detained since August 2019”.
