A Nigerian civil society group says it may soon adopt the Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, as a “Prisoner of Conscience.”
Mr Sowore has been in the custody of the Department of State Security (DSS) since August 2 in the wake of a nationwide movement termed #RevolutionNow which he was overseeing.
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The Federal Government has filed charges of treason and money laundering against him.
However, Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC) said on Monday in Lagos that it was working with renowned rights groups across the world to ensure that Sowore is adopted as a prisoner of conscience unless the government releases him without further delay.
The group also accused Nigerian authorities of making frivolous charges against Sowore.
It also called for the release of Olawale Bakare, a member of #RevolutionNow arrested in Osogbo, Osun, on August 5; Publisher of Cross River Watch, Agba Jalingo; and Ekanem Ekpo. The last duo are yet to be arraigned in court.
“The continoued detention of Sowore is an embarrassment to Nigeria as a country. Everywhere we visit across the world, people are asking questions about Sowore’s detention,” CSNAC Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju said.
“Many people do not understand the logic of laying charges of treason against Sowore simply because he used the word revolution.
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“His incarceration continues to put a question mark on the credibility of the Nigerian government. Democracy dies when the culture of debate and the tradition of protest are lost.”
The group said Sowore was being hunted partly because of a series of publications in Sahara Reporters that consistently exposed corrupt practices in governments.
