Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Rights activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, in the 2023 election, Omoyele Sowore, has been released minutes after his arrest.
Sowore was arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, on Sunday morning at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State.
This is coming barely one week after the National President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero, was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja.
Sowere wrote: “I had just arrived in Nigeria from the USA at MMIA in Lagos; upon reaching Nigerian Immigration, my passport was seized, and they told me they had orders to detain me.
“This is not unexpected because I have always known that it is part of the broader clampdown by the fascist @officialAbat regime on dissent and their fear of the upcoming #FearlessINOctober revolt.
“In case this becomes another prolonged and protracted detention, I urge our citizens to ensure they ALL stop tyranny by all means acceptable and necessary, by engaging in the planned series of direct actions slated for 1 October and beyond.”
His flight left Washington Dulles International Airport at 6.14 EDT and arrived in Lagos at around 9.43am.
On Thursday, 12 September 2024, a DSS memo ordering the arrest of Sowore upon his arrival in Nigeria was leaked.
However, in a post via his official X handle, Sowore disclosed that he had been released by the Nigerian Immigration Service and his passport had been released to him after it was earlier confiscated.
He wrote, “I have just been released by the Nigerian Immigration after a brief detention and my passport released back to me.”
