By Adenike Lawal
The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed January 22 for the commencement of trial in the case against Omoyele Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters, over an alleged false statement against President Bola Tinubu.
Justice Mohammed Umar set the date on Monday after Sowore was arraigned on a two-count amended charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS). He pleaded not guilty to both counts.
Court records show that the amended charge, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025, listed Sowore as the sole defendant after the court struck out the names of X (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc. (Facebook) from the original charge at the prosecution’s request.
The DSS alleged that on August 25, 2025, Sowore posted a message on his verified X handle, @YeleSowore, accusing President Tinubu of falsely claiming during a visit to Brazil that corruption no longer existed under his administration. The prosecution said the statement was knowingly false and capable of inciting public disorder.
The alleged offence is said to contravene provisions of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024.
Sowore’s counsel, Marshal Abubakar, applied for the continuation of the bail earlier granted, which the court approved. Although the prosecution said its witness was present, the defence objected to proceeding, citing failure to disclose witnesses and depositions as required by law.
Justice Umar adjourned the case to January 22 for definite hearing.
