The human rights activist and African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has regained his freedom after being released from the Kuje correctional centre in Abuja. Speaking in a live television interview shortly after walking out of custody, he said he was back in the public arena and intent on continuing the political and rights campaigns that have repeatedly brought him into conflict with the authorities.
Sowore was freed after the Federal High Court restored the bail that had earlier been revoked, bringing an end to a spell in detention that had drawn attention from his supporters and rights groups. He had been remanded to the Kuje facility while the case against him proceeded, and his release was ordered to his legal team as the matter continues before the court.
The detention stemmed from allegations filed by the State Security Service in connection with posts he had made on social media relating to President Bola Tinubu. Sowore, a familiar figure in Nigeria's protest movements who has faced the courts on several previous occasions, framed the episode as another instance of the state using detention against its critics.
As part of the conditions attached to the reinstated bail, the activist was required to meet a series of terms set by the court, including the deposit of his international passport and the provision of sureties, among them a traditional ruler from his community and a person with landed property in the federal capital. Having fulfilled those requirements, he was able to leave the custodial centre.
Speaking after his release, Sowore insisted that the time behind bars had strengthened rather than weakened his resolve. He said his experience had reinforced his conviction to keep pressing his causes, presenting his return as a continuation of a long-running struggle rather than a moment of retreat.
The activist also used the interview to deliver a pointed critique of the country's correctional system. He argued that there was little that was genuinely corrective about the centres in which inmates are held, contending that the conditions inside were not meaningfully different from the hardships faced by many Nigerians outside, and questioning how much the authorities truly cared for those held in detention.
With the proceedings against him set to continue and his defence expected to be taken up when the court reconvenes, Sowore's release returns a vocal opposition figure to the political stage at a time when attention is already turning towards the 2027 general elections. As the African Action Congress candidate, his renewed activity is likely to sharpen the debate around civil liberties and the treatment of government critics in the months ahead.