{"success":true,"message":"News retrieved","data":{"articles":[{"id":"6ade882c-6894-4081-954d-3c083347df11","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore visits late AAC candidate OJAs’ family, decries poverty, darkness in Omotosho","slug":"sowore-visits-late-aac-candidate-ojas-family-decries-poverty-darkness-in-omotosho","body":"\n\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, for the 2027 election, Omoyele Sowore, has visited Omotosho Township in Ondo State to condole with the family of the late AAC House of Assembly candidate for Okitipupa Constituency 1, Oludegun Justice Ojajuni, popularly known as OJAs.\n\nSowore, who disclosed this in a statement on Saturday, said the visit was to mourn and honour the late comrade, while also highlighting the difficult living conditions faced by residents of the community.\n\nAccording to him, Omotosho is confronted with serious challenges, including unemployment, destroyed livelihoods and lack of electricity, despite the community hosting a major gas turbine power plant, \"A community that powers Nigeria should not live in darkness, poverty, and neglect,” Sowore said.\n\nHe described the situation as unacceptable, stressing that communities contributing to the country’s power supply should not be left without access to basic electricity and other essential services.\n\nSowore also used the visit to remember OJAs, whom he described as a comrade whose struggle was connected to the broader fight for a better Nigeria, “We mourn OJAs and recommit to his struggle for a Nigeria where resources benefit the people and no community is left behind,” he said.\n\nHe prayed for the late activist, saying, “May Comrade OJAs rest in power.”\n\nOJAs, who contested for the Ondo State House of Assembly under the AAC, died in August 2026. In a tribute reported by SaharaReporters, the AAC Ondo State chapter described him as a committed activist, a fearless advocate for the oppressed and a “soldier of the people.”\n\nThe party said his decision to contest under the AAC platform reflected his belief in a Nigeria founded on justice, equity and the protection of citizens’ rights. It also recalled his grassroots activities and commitment to the party’s political ideals.\n\nThe AAC described his death as a major loss to the party and the progressive movement in Ondo State, urging members to continue the struggle for which he stood.\n\nSowore’s visit to Omotosho therefore combined a condolence visit with renewed attention to the socio-economic challenges facing residents of the community, particularly the contradiction of a community hosting a major power facility while its residents continue to experience poor electricity supply and economic hardship.","excerpt":"The presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, for the 2027 election, Omoyele Sowore, has visited Omotosho Township in Ondo State to condole with the family of the late AAC House of Assembly candidate for Okitipupa Constituency 1, Oludegun Justice Ojajuni, popularly known as OJAs...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-06T00:20:09.347Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/c73ef699-92e2-4fb4-94f3-bc5cb0c96048.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-06T00:20:09.347Z","updated_at":"2026-09-06T00:20:37.844Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'1':51B,97C '2026':288C '2027':24B,70C 'aac':4A,21B,43B,67C,89C,284C,296C,327C,360C 'access':201C 'accord':138C 'action':19B,65C 'activ':350C 'activist':264C,305C 'advoc':308C 'african':18B,64C 'also':126C,210C,346C 'assembl':46B,92C,281C 'attent':400C 'august':287C 'basic':203C 'behind':256C 'belief':331C 'benefit':248C 'better':233C 'broader':229C 'candid':5A,15B,47B,61C,93C 'challeng':146C,406C 'chapter':299C 'citizen':343C 'combin':394C 'commit':304C,352C 'communiti':137C,157C,166C,188C,253C,411C,417C 'comrad':124C,222C,267C 'condit':131C 'condol':36B,82C,396C 'confront':143C 'congress':20B,66C 'connect':226C 'constitu':50B,96C 'contest':274C,324C 'continu':381C,426C 'contradict':414C 'contribut':189C 'countri':192C 'dark':10A,174C 'death':363C 'decis':322C 'decri':8A 'describ':181C,219C,300C,361C 'despit':155C 'destroy':149C 'die':285C 'difficult':129C 'disclos':107C 'econom':405C,433C 'elect':25B,71C 'electr':154C,204C,430C 'equiti':338C 'essenti':207C 'experi':428C 'face':132C,407C 'facil':422C 'famili':7A,39B,85C 'fearless':307C 'fight':230C 'found':335C 'gas':161C 'grassroot':349C 'hardship':434C 'highlight':127C 'honour':121C 'host':158C,418C 'hous':44B,90C,279C 'ideal':358C 'includ':147C 'justic':53B,99C,337C 'known':56B,102C 'lack':152C 'late':3A,42B,88C,123C,263C 'left':199C,255C 'live':130C,172C 'livelihood':150C 'loss':367C 'major':160C,366C,420C 'may':266C 'member':379C 'mourn':119C,236C 'movement':374C 'neglect':177C 'nigeria':169C,234C,245C,334C 'oja':6A,58B,104C,216C,237C,268C,272C 'ojajuni':54B,100C 'okitipupa':49B,95C 'oludegun':52B,98C 'omotosho':12A,30B,76C,141C,392C 'omoyel':26B,72C 'ondo':33B,79C,277C,297C,376C 'oppress':311C 'parti':319C,355C,370C 'particular':412C 'peopl':250C,317C 'plant':164C 'platform':328C 'polit':357C 'poor':429C 'popular':55B,101C 'poverti':9A,175C 'power':163C,168C,194C,271C,421C 'pray':260C 'presidenti':14B,60C 'progress':373C 'protect':341C 'recal':347C 'recommit':239C 'reflect':329C 'rememb':215C 'renew':399C 'report':292C 'resid':134C,408C,425C 'resourc':247C 'rest':269C 'right':344C 'saharareport':294C 'said':114C,179C,258C,320C 'saturday':113C 'say':265C 'serious':145C 'servic':208C 'situat':183C 'socio':404C 'socio-econom':403C 'soldier':314C 'sowor':1A,27B,73C,105C,178C,209C,388C 'state':34B,80C,278C,298C,377C 'statement':111C 'stood':387C 'stress':186C 'struggl':224C,242C,383C 'suppli':195C,431C 'therefor':393C 'township':31B,77C 'tribut':291C 'turbin':162C 'unaccept':185C 'unemploy':148C 'urg':378C 'use':211C 'visit':2A,29B,75C,116C,213C,390C,397C 'whose':223C 'without':200C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":1,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":20,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":20,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":20,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":2,"share_count":1}},{"id":"e388cf5a-dd63-4a77-b830-4920cfc0b947","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"AAC’s Ina Okopi-Agu inaugurates RESET2027 campaign team, promises security, jobs, rural development","slug":"aac-s-ina-okopi-agu-inaugurates-reset2027-campaign-team-promises-security-jobs-rural-development","body":"\n\nThe African Action Congress (AAC) candidate for the Otukpo/Ohimini Federal Constituency, Comr. Engr. Ina Okopi-Agu, has inaugurated his RESET2027 campaign organisation, promising to prioritise security, agriculture, healthcare, youth empowerment, sustainable electricity and rural infrastructure if elected.\n\nThe campaign team was inaugurated on Friday, September 4, 2026, at Akalo Hotel, Ogobia-Ugboju, in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State. The event brought together AAC members, party leaders, community stakeholders and supporters from across Otukpo and Ohimini Local Government Areas.\n\nAt the ceremony, Inalegwu Idoga of Ohimini LGA was inaugurated as the Director-General of the campaign, while Comrade Abel Obogwu of Otukpo LGA was appointed Deputy Director-General. Chief Uloko Ameh, popularly known as Solidek, was appointed Secretary of the campaign organisation.\n\nA total of 23 ward coordinators drawn from Otukpo and Ohimini LGAs were also inaugurated, giving the campaign a grassroots structure across the constituency.\n\nSpeaking at the event, Okopi-Agu said the campaign was built around the strength and participation of ordinary people, urging the newly inaugurated coordinators to take the message of political renewal to every ward, village and polling unit in the constituency.\n\n“Our people have been failed for too long,” he said.\n\n“We cannot talk of development while our communities live in fear. My priority is clear: we will push for real security presence, invest in agriculture as the backbone of our local economy, healthcare, sustainable power and create opportunities for our young people to thrive.”\n\nOkopi-Agu said security would remain a major priority of his agenda, particularly against the backdrop of the recent attacks on communities in the Otukpo area, which reportedly claimed lives and displaced families.\n\nHe stressed that security must go beyond political promises, describing it as the foundation upon which meaningful development could be built. According to him, the constituency cannot achieve economic growth, agricultural development or improved living standards when residents are unable to live and work safely.\n\nThe AAC candidate also promised to promote agriculture as a major driver of the local economy, while supporting young people with opportunities that would enable them to become economically independent.\n\nHe further listed sustainable power, including mini-grid projects, improved healthcare services and rural infrastructure among the key areas his campaign would focus on.\n\nThe candidate said the RESET2027 campaign would not be limited to rallies and political meetings, but would involve direct engagement with residents across the constituency.\n\nHe said the campaign team would move into communities across Otukpo and Ohimini to listen to residents, understand their challenges and present what he described as a people-centred alternative to the existing political system.\n\n“This is not about one man,” Okopi-Agu added. “It is about all of us taking back our future.”\n\nThe inauguration was conducted peacefully and attracted strong support from party members and sympathisers, who described the composition of the campaign team as a reflection of the diversity of the constituency.\n\nWith the inauguration of the campaign structure, the AAC candidate said the RESET2027 team was now fully positioned to intensify grassroots mobilisation and engage directly with voters ahead of the 2027 general elections.","excerpt":"A total of 23 ward coordinators drawn from Otukpo and Ohimini LGAs were also inaugurated, giving the campaign a grassroots structure across the constituency...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-05T23:53:33.717Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/86828e6b-1750-4020-a30c-06de8da58b30.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-05T23:53:33.717Z","updated_at":"2026-09-06T12:44:54.175Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2026':87C '2027':563C '23':19B,170C '4':86C 'aac':1A,44C,106C,367C,541C 'abel':142C 'accord':342C 'achiev':348C 'across':37B,115C,188C,443C,455C 'action':42C 'ad':491C 'african':41C 'agenda':299C 'agricultur':67C,267C,351C,373C 'agu':6A,56C,197C,289C,490C 'ahead':560C 'akalo':89C 'also':29B,180C,369C 'altern':476C 'ameh':155C 'among':412C 'appoint':148C,161C 'area':98C,121C,313C,415C 'around':203C 'attack':307C 'attract':508C 'back':499C 'backbon':270C 'backdrop':303C 'becom':393C 'benu':100C 'beyond':327C 'brought':104C 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organisation and help take the state back for the people.\n\nThe campaign, built around the slogan “Take Nasarawa Back,” is focused on expanding the party’s presence at the grassroots, mobilising young people and women, registering new contacts and building a strong network of volunteers across the state.\n\nThe AAC said the campaign is already gaining momentum, with residents organising at the community level and volunteers going from place to place to engage people and canvass support.\n\n“Nasarawa is not waiting. The people are organising, women are stepping forward, youth are canvassing and contacts are being registered,” the campaign said.\n\nThe party also highlighted the growing commitment of new members and organisers who have joined the AAC, describing their involvement as evidence that people-powered politics is gaining ground in the state.\n\nAccording to the campaign, one of the recent developments involved an organiser who previously operated a political structure for established politicians but decided to dismantle the structure and move it towards the AAC.\n\n“That is a win for AAC. That is people power growing in real time,” the campaign stated.\n\nAs part of efforts to strengthen the mobilisation, the AAC is seeking ₦400,000 in immediate support to produce campaign and mobilisation materials for use across Nasarawa. The proposed materials include 50 berets costing ₦175,000, 100 A2 prints costing ₦25,000, 1,000 A3 posters costing ₦150,000 and 1,000 A6 stickers costing ₦50,000.\n\nThe party said the materials would help volunteers increase the visibility of the campaign, reach more communities and communicate its message directly to residents.\n\nThe fundraising drive is therefore being presented as a call for supporters to contribute directly to the work of grassroots organising, rather than leaving political mobilisation to wealthy individuals and political elites.\n\nThe AAC urged Nigerians who believe in people-powered politics to support the campaign financially and through active participation, stressing that every contribution can help strengthen its grassroots structure.\n\nThe party said its objective is to build a political movement capable of mobilising ordinary people across Nasarawa and giving them a greater role in determining the political future of the state.\n\nWith the 2027 elections approaching, the AAC is positioning the Nasarawa campaign as part of its broader effort to build a strong grassroots movement driven by volunteers, youths, women and ordinary citizens.\n\nThe campaign is being promoted with the hashtags #TakeNasarawaBack, #Sowore2027, #AAC, #PeoplePower and #FundTheWork, as the party calls on supporters to join the mobilisation and help take Nasarawa back.\n\nSupport the SoworeNow campaign using the link: https://www.soworenow.org/donate","excerpt":"The campaign, built around the slogan “Take Nasarawa Back,” is focused on expanding the party’s presence at the grassroots, mobilising young people and women, registering new contacts and building a strong network of volunteers across the state...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-05T17:20:10.784Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/07278592-3b86-435d-b8fa-907337c0ae93.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-05T17:20:10.784Z","updated_at":"2026-09-05T18:07:15.360Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'/donate':508C '000':276C,298C,304C,306C,311C,314C,319C '1':305C,313C '100':299C '150':310C '175':297C '2027':440C '25':303C '400':275C '50':294C,318C 'a2':300C 'a3':307C 'a6':315C 'aac':1A,55C,129C,196C,245C,251C,272C,377C,444C,480C 'accord':213C 'across':48B,125C,288C,422C 'action':53C 'activ':394C 'african':52C 'alreadi':134C 'also':182C 'approach':442C 'around':16B,93C 'back':12A,21B,86C,98C,498C 'believ':381C 'beret':295C 'broader':454C 'build':42B,119C,413C,457C 'built':15B,92C 'call':67C,353C,487C 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should ₦500k minimum wage cause inflation when senators earn ₦30m monthly?”, Sowore questions","slug":"why-should-500k-minimum-wage-cause-inflation-when-senators-earn-30m-monthly-sowore-questions","body":"\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has questioned the argument that paying Nigerian workers a minimum wage of ₦500,000 would cause inflation, while senators reportedly earn about ₦30 million monthly and continue to demand more.\n\nSowore raised the issue in a post on his social media handles on Friday, challenging the justification for the huge earnings of political office holders amid the economic hardship facing millions of Nigerians.\n\nHe wrote, “If a minimum wage of ₦500k per worker will cause inflation, why are Nigerian Senators earning ₦30m per month and always asking for more? Why aren’t govs sticking to their monthly salaries which is N700k monthly instead of constantly stealing from the public treasury?”\n\nThe AAC candidate argued that the government’s concerns about inflation should not be used to deny workers a wage capable of meeting their basic needs, particularly as the cost of food, transportation, housing, healthcare and other necessities continues to rise.\n\nSowore has consistently advocated a ₦500,000 minimum wage for Nigerian workers, describing it as necessary to address the widening gap between workers’ incomes and the rising cost of living.\n\nIn May 2024, Sowore had proposed a ₦500,000 minimum wage, arguing that the increase was necessary to cushion the impact of rising living costs on Nigerian workers. The proposal was made as Nigerians faced sharp increases in the prices of food, fuel, transportation and other essential commodities.\n\nThe presidential candidate has continued to defend the proposal, maintaining that Nigerian workers should earn wages that allow them to live with dignity rather than struggle to survive from month to month.\n\nHis latest comments, however, shifted attention to the earnings and privileges of political office holders, particularly lawmakers and governors. Sowore questioned why workers’ wage demands are frequently linked to inflation while political office holders continue to receive substantial salaries, allowances and other benefits.\n\nHe also questioned why governors, whose official monthly salary is reportedly about ₦700,000, should go beyond their legitimate earnings through what he described as the theft of public resources.\n\nThe AAC candidate has repeatedly criticised what he describes as Nigeria’s high cost of governance, corruption and excessive privileges for political office holders.\n\nHe has argued that public resources should be redirected towards improving the welfare of citizens, funding education and healthcare, creating jobs and providing basic infrastructure rather than sustaining what he considers an expensive political class.\n\nSowore’s latest remarks have therefore renewed his call for a living wage while challenging the political establishment to justify its own earnings and expenditure before opposing substantial wage increases for Nigerian workers.","excerpt":"He wrote, “If a minimum wage of ₦500k per worker will cause inflation, why are Nigerian Senators earning ₦30m per month and always asking for more? Why aren’t govs sticking to their monthly salaries which is N700k monthly instead of constantly stealing from the public treasury?”","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-05T04:54:34.504Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/bcdcac3b-0ff2-4c8e-9410-0a0518c38e8c.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-05T04:54:34.504Z","updated_at":"2026-09-05T04:56:17.073Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'000':85C,229C,261C,389C '2024':255C '30':94C '30m':11A,33B,153C '500':84C,228C,260C '500k':3A,22B,142C '700':388C 'aac':183C,407C 'action':68C 'address':240C 'advoc':226C 'african':67C 'allow':318C,372C 'also':377C 'alway':37B,157C 'amid':127C 'aren':42B,162C 'argu':185C,264C,432C 'argument':75C 'ask':38B,158C 'attent':338C 'basic':206C,453C 'benefit':375C 'beyond':392C 'call':473C 'candid':64C,184C,303C,408C 'capabl':202C 'caus':6A,26B,87C,146C 'challeng':116C,479C 'citizen':444C 'class':464C 'comment':335C 'commod':300C 'concern':190C 'congress':69C 'consid':460C 'consist':225C 'constant':56B,176C 'continu':98C,220C,305C,367C 'corrupt':422C 'cost':211C,250C,277C,419C 'creat':449C 'criticis':411C 'cushion':271C 'defend':307C 'demand':100C,357C 'deni':198C 'describ':235C,399C,414C 'digniti':323C 'earn':10A,32B,92C,122C,152C,315C,341C,395C,487C 'econom':129C 'educ':446C 'essenti':299C 'establish':482C 'excess':424C 'expenditur':489C 'expens':462C 'face':131C,287C 'food':213C,294C 'frequent':359C 'friday':115C 'fuel':295C 'fund':445C 'gap':243C 'go':391C 'gov':44B,164C 'govern':188C,421C 'governor':351C,380C 'handl':113C 'hardship':130C 'healthcar':216C,448C 'high':418C 'holder':126C,347C,366C,429C 'hous':215C 'howev':336C 'huge':121C 'impact':273C 'improv':440C 'incom':246C 'increas':267C,289C,494C 'inflat':7A,27B,88C,147C,192C,362C 'infrastructur':454C 'instead':54B,174C 'issu':105C 'job':450C 'justif':118C 'justifi':484C 'latest':334C,467C 'lawmak':349C 'legitim':394C 'link':360C 'live':252C,276C,321C,476C 'made':284C 'maintain':310C 'may':254C 'media':112C 'meet':204C 'million':95C,132C 'minimum':4A,19B,81C,139C,230C,262C 'month':12A,35B,48B,53B,96C,155C,168C,173C,330C,332C,383C 'n700k':52B,172C 'necess':219C 'necessari':238C,269C 'need':207C 'nigeria':416C 'nigerian':30B,78C,134C,150C,233C,279C,286C,312C,496C 'offic':125C,346C,365C,428C 'offici':382C 'omoyel':70C 'oppos':491C 'particular':208C,348C 'pay':77C 'per':23B,34B,143C,154C 'polit':124C,345C,364C,427C,463C,481C 'post':108C 'presidenti':63C,302C 'price':292C 'privileg':343C,425C 'propos':258C,282C,309C 'provid':452C 'public':60B,180C,404C,434C 'question':14A,73C,353C,378C 'rais':103C 'rather':324C,455C 'receiv':369C 'redirect':438C 'remark':468C 'renew':471C 'repeat':410C 'report':91C,386C 'resourc':405C,435C 'rise':222C,249C,275C 'salari':49B,169C,371C,384C 'senat':9A,31B,90C,151C 'sharp':288C 'shift':337C 'social':111C 'sowor':13A,71C,102C,223C,256C,352C,465C 'steal':57B,177C 'stick':45B,165C 'struggl':326C 'substanti':370C,492C 'surviv':328C 'sustain':457C 'theft':402C 'therefor':470C 'toward':439C 'transport':214C,296C 'treasuri':61B,181C 'use':196C 'wage':5A,20B,82C,140C,201C,231C,263C,316C,356C,477C,493C 'welfar':442C 'whose':381C 'widen':242C 'worker':24B,79C,144C,199C,234C,245C,280C,313C,355C,497C 'would':86C 'wrote':16B,136C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":1,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":17,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":17,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":17,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":6,"share_count":1}},{"id":"1734fe98-5e99-4334-ba25-c5d69151cae0","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore mourns Emir of Gumel, Muhammed Sani","slug":"sowore-mourns-emir-of-gumel-muhammed-sani","body":"\n\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has expressed sadness over the death of the Emir of Gumel, Alhaji Ahmad Muhammad Sani.\n\nSowore, in a condolence message, sympathised with the late Emir’s family, the people of Gumel Emirate and the people of Jigawa State over the loss. He described the late traditional ruler as an elder known for dignity, wisdom and calmness, saying his death was a great loss to the people he served and to Nigerians who value traditional institutions.\n\nAccording to Sowore, the death of an elder of the Emir’s generation should remind Nigerians of the importance of honesty, courage, dignity and responsibility in public life.\n\nHe said Nigeria was facing serious challenges caused by corruption, abuse of power and the misuse of public trust, stressing that the country needs leaders and citizens who are committed to integrity and accountability.\n\nSowore urged the people of Gumel and Nigerians at large to honour the late Emir by living by the values he represented, rather than limiting his remembrance to ceremonies and tributes.\n\nHe also called on Nigerians to reject corruption, oppose abuse of power and demand accountability from those entrusted with public office.\n\nThe AAC presidential candidate said traditional rulers, political leaders and citizens all have a role to play in confronting corruption and bad governance, which he said continue to deepen poverty and hardship across the country.\n\nSowore prayed for the forgiveness of the late Emir’s shortcomings and asked Allah to grant him Jannatul Firdaus.\n\n“May Allah forgive the shortcomings of the late Emir, grant him Jannatul Firdaus, and give his family, the people of Gumel and all those mourning this great loss the strength and fortitude to bear it,” he said.\n\nHe added that the memory of the late Emir should continue to inspire Nigerians to uphold dignity, integrity and service to the people.","excerpt":"“May Allah forgive the shortcomings of the late Emir, grant him Jannatul Firdaus, and give his family, the people of Gumel and all those mourning this great loss the strength and fortitude to bear it...\"","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-04T06:38:10.798Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/30eab7a1-9f13-4d14-b350-3ac5726a3fa6.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-04T06:38:10.799Z","updated_at":"2026-09-04T08:35:55.181Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'aac':242C 'abus':165C,229C 'accord':127C 'account':188C,234C 'across':273C 'action':48C 'ad':333C 'african':47C 'ahmad':64C 'alhaji':63C 'allah':9B,289C,296C 'also':221C 'ask':288C 'bad':262C 'bear':41B,328C 'call':222C 'calm':107C 'candid':44C,244C 'caus':162C 'ceremoni':217C 'challeng':161C 'citizen':181C,251C 'commit':184C 'condol':70C 'confront':259C 'congress':49C 'continu':267C,342C 'corrupt':164C,227C,260C 'countri':177C,275C 'courag':148C 'death':57C,110C,131C 'deepen':269C 'demand':233C 'describ':94C 'digniti':104C,149C,348C 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homes","slug":"sowore-returns-to-oworonshoki-vows-to-end-demolitions-promises-one-million-public-homes","body":"\n\nHuman rights activist and African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has returned to Oworonshoki, Lagos State, years after protesting the demolition of homes and displacement of residents in the community.\n\nSowore, who visited some of the families affected by the demolition exercises, vowed that his government would end the forced demolition and displacement of poor Nigerians.\n\nHe also promised to build one million public mixed-income homes across Nigeria if elected President in the 2027 general elections.\n\nSowore said Oworonshoki would be the starting point of the proposed housing programme.\n\nSharing details of his visit in a post on X on Thursday, the AAC Presidential candidate said, “Today, I returned to Oworonshoki, Lagos, where families were brutally displaced and their homes demolished.\n\n“In the past, I stood with them when the @PoliceNG tear-gassed us and declared me wanted for resisting this injustice.\n\n“We returned today with a promise: under the #Sowore2027 government, we will launch 1 MILLION PUBLIC MIXED-INCOME HOMES across Nigeria; we will start from here! No more demolition and displacement. Housing is a right, not a privilege!”\n\nThe Oworonshoki demolition controversy dates back to 2023, when the Lagos State Government carried out demolition exercises across parts of the community.\n\nSeveral areas, including Oke-Eri, Oluwaseyi, Community, Cornerstone and Ogo-Oluwa, were affected, leaving many families without homes.\n\n\n\nResidents and civil society groups, however, accused the government of carrying out forced evictions without adequate compensation or alternative accommodation for those affected.\n\nReports from the period said hundreds of structures were demolished, while different community groups gave figures running into thousands of homes and structures.\n\nIn one of the demolition operations, about 250 houses were reportedly pulled down in parts of Oworonshoki, with thousands of residents said to have been displaced from Oke-Eri, Odun-Ifa and Precious Seed communities.\n\nThe demolitions triggered protests by residents and activists, with calls for the government to stop the exercise, compensate victims and provide alternative accommodation.\n\nA coalition of civil society organisations later claimed that about 7,000 homes and structures had been demolished, affecting more than 40,000 households.\n\nThe coalition also challenged the government's explanation for the demolitions, alleging that some of the affected areas were being cleared for future development, including a proposed jetty.\n\nThe dispute resurfaced in 2025 following further demolition activities in Oworonshoki, with affected residents again demanding compensation and justice.\n\nIn October 2025, the Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency said it had begun paying compensation to verified property owners affected by the demolition.\n\nLASURA said 79 beneficiaries had been verified during the initial process, with subsequent reports putting the number at about 80.\n\nVictims' groups, however, rejected the process, accusing the government of selectively compensating only a small number of affected property owners while leaving thousands of other victims without relief.\n\nSowore's latest visit has brought renewed attention to the plight of the displaced families and the wider debate over demolitions, forced evictions, compensation and affordable housing in Lagos.\n\nThe AAC candidate said his proposed one-million-home programme would provide public mixed-income housing across Nigeria, beginning with Oworonshoki.\n\nHe further maintained that under his administration, Nigerians would not have to choose between having a home and facing government demolition.\n\nFor Sowore, the Oworonshoki community would therefore serve not only as a symbol of displacement but also as the starting point of his promised public housing revolution.","excerpt":"“We returned today with a promise: under the #Sowore2027 government, we will launch 1 MILLION PUBLIC MIXED-INCOME HOMES across Nigeria;...\"","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-03T23:17:27.510Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/31628c59-7baa-4a83-b059-466ac6b92d51.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-03T23:17:27.510Z","updated_at":"2026-09-03T23:18:03.686Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'000':380C,391C '1':27B,195C '2023':228C '2025':425C,442C '2027':112C '250':316C '40':390C '7':379C '79':465C '80':482C 'aac':141C,541C 'accommod':282C,368C 'accus':269C,489C 'across':34B,105C,202C,238C,558C 'action':41C 'activ':429C 'activist':38C,353C 'adequ':278C 'administr':569C 'affect':74C,257C,285C,387C,409C,433C,459C,500C 'afford':536C 'african':40C 'agenc':448C 'alleg':404C 'also':94C,395C,600C 'altern':281C,367C 'area':244C,410C 'attent':518C 'back':226C 'begin':560C 'begun':452C 'beneficiari':466C 'brought':516C 'brutal':154C 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'year':53C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":1,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":22,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":22,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":22,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":8,"share_count":1}},{"id":"9010b401-7b7d-40d8-998c-e6222d8c592e","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore blasts establishment politicians’ ‘rent-a-party’ culture","slug":"sowore-blasts-establishment-politicians-rent-a-party-culture","body":"\n\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has criticised establishment politicians in Nigeria over what he described as a “rent-a-party” culture ahead of the 2027 general elections.\n\nSowore, in a statement posted on his social media platforms on Wednesday, stated that politicians in both the ruling party and the so called opposition of relying on wealthy sponsors, political godfathers and the machinery of government to pursue their electoral ambitions.\n\nAccording to him, such politicians often claim that winning elections in Nigeria requires “billions of naira, powerful godfathers and godmothers, billionaire backers, and the machinery of the state.”\n\nHowever, Sowore challenged them to explain why they have been unable to build and sustain independent political movements without relying on such influential backers.\n\nHe cited the AAC as an example of a political platform he said was built without the backing of political godfathers or billionaire patrons.\n\n“But ask them one simple question and that is, why hasn’t any of them built and sustained a genuine political movement without godfathers, godmothers or billionaire patrons, the way we built the African Action Congress,” Sowore wrote.\n\nHe said the AAC had instead been built through “courage, conviction, sacrifice and ordinary people.”\n\nSowore stated further that establishment politicians go about, repeatedly searching for political parties to contest elections on, despite not having played a role in building those platforms.\n\n“Ask them why, during every election cycle, they have to go shopping for and renting political parties they neither built nor believe in, simply to satisfy their inordinate personal ambitions,” he said.\n\nThe AAC candidate also criticised politicians who, after moving between different political parties, attempt to convince their supporters that their new platforms or coalitions are the only realistic route to electoral victory.\n\nHe described such claims as an attempt to “gaslight” Nigerians into abandoning political platforms they had already built.\n\n“Then, after jumping from party to party, they turn around and gaslight you into joining them, claiming that theirs including nebulous coalitions are the only ‘viable’ path to victory,” Sowore said.\n\nQuestioning the strength of such politicians, he asked why those who consider themselves formidable political figures have not been able to establish political organisations of their own.\n\n“If they are such formidable politicians, why can’t they build anything of their own?” he asked.\n\nSowore also questioned why politicians repeatedly wait until election periods before attempting to “hijack, rent or inherit political platforms they neither built nor truly believe in.”\n\nHe added that some of these politicians use their supporters and political surrogates to pressure others into abandoning political organisations they have built in favour of what he described as “reactionary platforms.”\n\n“And why do they have to send their supporters and surrogates to blindside, blackball and pressure you into abandoning what you have built to join their reactionary platforms?” he asked.\n\nSowore challenged politicians who believe in the strength of their ideas and political platforms to demonstrate that strength by building and mobilising their own organisations.\n\n“If their ideas are so compelling, let them organize. If their platforms are so popular, let them mobilize. If their politics is so powerful, let them build,” he said.\n\nHe concluded by defending the AAC as a political platform built through the efforts and sacrifices of its members.\n\n“We built ours with our sweat and blood. Let them build theirs,” Sowore declared, ending the post with the hashtag #Sowore2027.","excerpt":"“Ask them why, during every election cycle, they have to go shopping for and renting political parties they neither built nor believe in, simply to satisfy their inordinate personal ambitions...”","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-02T19:41:43.340Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/51ac0756-ad3d-42c0-8389-c5618ece08ee.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-02T19:41:43.340Z","updated_at":"2026-09-02T19:55:21.244Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2027':71C 'aac':48C,171C,233C,305C,576C 'abandon':347C,472C,505C 'abl':404C 'accord':116C 'action':46C,226C 'ad':456C 'african':45C,225C 'ahead':68C 'alreadi':352C 'also':307C,430C 'ambit':39B,115C,301C 'anyth':423C 'around':363C 'ask':10B,193C,272C,392C,428C,516C 'attempt':317C,342C,440C 'back':185C 'backer':137C,167C 'believ':31B,293C,453C,521C 'billion':129C 'billionair':136C,190C,218C 'blackbal':500C 'blast':2A 'blindsid':499C 'blood':597C 'build':156C,269C,422C,536C,568C,600C 'built':29B,182C,207C,223C,237C,291C,353C,450C,477C,509C,581C,591C 'call':97C 'candid':42C,306C 'challeng':146C,518C 'cite':169C 'claim':122C,339C,370C 'coalit':327C,375C 'compel':547C 'conclud':572C 'congress':47C,227C 'consid':396C 'contest':259C 'convict':240C 'convinc':319C 'courag':239C 'criticis':52C,308C 'cultur':9A,67C 'cycl':16B,278C 'declar':603C 'defend':574C 'demonstr':532C 'describ':60C,337C,483C 'despit':262C 'differ':314C 'effort':584C 'elect':15B,73C,125C,260C,277C,437C 'elector':114C,334C 'end':604C 'establish':3A,53C,249C,406C 'everi':14B,276C 'exampl':174C 'explain':149C 'favour':479C 'figur':400C 'formid':398C,416C 'gaslight':344C,365C 'general':72C 'genuin':211C 'go':20B,251C,282C 'godfath':105C,133C,188C,215C 'godmoth':135C,216C 'govern':110C 'hashtag':609C 'hasn':202C 'hijack':442C 'howev':144C 'idea':527C,544C 'includ':373C 'independ':159C 'influenti':166C 'inherit':445C 'inordin':37B,299C 'instead':235C 'join':368C,511C 'jump':356C 'let':548C,557C,566C,598C 'machineri':108C,140C 'media':82C 'member':589C 'mobil':559C 'mobilis':538C 'move':312C 'movement':161C,213C 'naira':131C 'nebul':374C 'neither':28B,290C,449C 'new':324C 'nigeria':56C,127C 'nigerian':345C 'often':121C 'omoyel':49C 'one':195C 'opposit':98C 'ordinari':243C 'organ':550C 'organis':408C,474C,541C 'other':470C 'parti':8A,26B,66C,93C,257C,288C,316C,358C,360C 'path':380C 'patron':191C,219C 'peopl':244C 'period':438C 'person':38B,300C 'platform':83C,178C,271C,325C,349C,447C,486C,514C,530C,553C,580C 'play':265C 'polit':25B,104C,160C,177C,187C,212C,256C,287C,315C,348C,399C,407C,446C,466C,473C,529C,562C,579C 'politician':4A,54C,88C,120C,250C,309C,390C,417C,433C,461C,519C 'popular':556C 'post':78C,606C 'power':132C,565C 'presidenti':41C 'pressur':469C,502C 'pursu':112C 'question':197C,385C,431C 'reactionari':485C,513C 'realist':331C 'reli':100C,163C 'rent':6A,24B,64C,286C,443C 'rent-a-parti':5A,63C 'repeat':253C,434C 'requir':128C 'role':267C 'rout':332C 'rule':92C 'sacrific':241C,586C 'said':180C,231C,303C,384C,570C 'satisfi':35B,297C 'search':254C 'send':493C 'shop':21B,283C 'simpl':196C 'simpli':33B,295C 'social':81C 'sowor':1A,50C,74C,145C,228C,245C,383C,429C,517C,602C 'sowore2027':610C 'sponsor':103C 'state':86C,143C,246C 'statement':77C 'strength':387C,524C,534C 'support':321C,464C,495C 'surrog':467C,497C 'sustain':158C,209C 'sweat':595C 'truli':452C 'turn':362C 'unabl':154C 'use':462C 'viabl':379C 'victori':335C,382C 'wait':435C 'way':221C 'wealthi':102C 'wednesday':85C 'win':124C 'without':162C,183C,214C 'wrote':229C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":3,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":23,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":23,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":23,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":8,"share_count":3}},{"id":"745211ed-01cf-411c-9a73-a48fef3862d7","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"“Their courage was for generations unborn” — Sowore hails Fawehinmi, Falana, Aborisade","slug":"their-courage-was-for-generations-unborn-sowore-hails-fawehinmi-falana-aborisade","body":"\nHuman rights activist and African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has paid tribute to veteran human rights lawyers and activists Gani Fawehinmi, Femi Falana and Femi Aborisade for their sacrifices in the struggle against military rule and injustice in Nigeria.\n\nSowore made the remarks while sharing a video posted by ObjecTV Media on Monday, which featured Fawehinmi, Falana and Aborisade during protests against military rule. ObjecTV Media captioned the video, “Gani Fawehinmi, Femi Aborisade & Femi Falana During The Heat Of Protests Against Military. No Amount of Wide Sponsored Mass Ignorance & Lazy Giveaways Can Drown Their Sacrifices. Their Records Stay In History!”\n\nReacting to the video, Sowore highlighted the courage and sacrifices made by the three activists, stressing that their struggles were not driven by personal interests but by the desire to secure freedom and justice for future generations.\n\n“Gani Fawehinmi. Femi Falana. Femi Aborisade,” Sowore wrote.\n\n“They made the sacrifices so that a nation could see the light, so that a new generation could breathe, speak freely, stand tall and continue the struggle for justice.”\n\nThe AAC presidential candidate said the courage displayed by the activists was aimed at creating a better Nigeria for generations they might never meet.\n\n“Their courage was never for themselves. It was for generations they might never meet, for freedoms they might never personally enjoy, and for a Nigeria they believed could still be liberated,” he added.\n\nFawehinmi, Falana and Aborisade were prominent figures in Nigeria’s pro-democracy and human rights struggles, particularly during the years of military rule. Their activism included legal battles, protests and public campaigns against repression, authoritarianism and violations of citizens’ rights.","excerpt":"“Their courage was never for themselves. It was for generations they might never meet, for freedoms they might never personally enjoy, and for a Nigeria they believed could still be liberated...\"","status":"published","published_at":"2026-09-02T04:57:59.232Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/d9b9acd2-b0e4-4941-a2aa-ea80a778e3f9.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-09-02T04:57:59.232Z","updated_at":"2026-09-02T16:48:52.523Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'aac':220C 'aborisad':11A,70C,103C,117C,187C,279C 'action':48C 'activ':301C 'activist':45C,63C,159C,229C 'ad':275C 'african':47C 'aim':231C 'amount':128C 'authoritarian':311C 'battl':304C 'believ':38B,269C 'better':235C 'breath':208C 'campaign':308C 'candid':51C,222C 'caption':111C 'citizen':315C 'congress':49C 'continu':214C 'could':39B,198C,207C,270C 'courag':2A,13B,152C,225C,244C 'creat':233C 'democraci':288C 'desir':173C 'display':226C 'driven':166C 'drown':137C 'enjoy':32B,263C 'falana':10A,67C,101C,119C,185C,277C 'fawehinmi':9A,65C,100C,115C,183C,276C 'featur':99C 'femi':66C,69C,116C,118C,184C,186C 'figur':282C 'freedom':27B,176C,258C 'freeli':210C 'futur':180C 'gani':64C,114C,182C 'generat':5A,21B,181C,206C,238C,252C 'giveaway':135C 'hail':8A 'heat':122C 'highlight':150C 'histori':144C 'human':43C,59C,290C 'ignor':133C 'includ':302C 'injustic':81C 'interest':169C 'justic':178C,218C 'lawyer':61C 'lazi':134C 'legal':303C 'liber':42B,273C 'light':201C 'made':85C,155C,191C 'mass':132C 'media':95C,110C 'meet':25B,242C,256C 'might':23B,29B,240C,254C,260C 'militari':78C,107C,126C,298C 'monday':97C 'nation':197C 'never':15B,24B,30B,241C,246C,255C,261C 'new':205C 'nigeria':36B,83C,236C,267C,284C 'objectv':94C,109C 'omoyel':52C 'paid':55C 'particular':293C 'person':31B,168C,262C 'post':92C 'presidenti':50C,221C 'pro':287C 'pro-democraci':286C 'promin':281C 'protest':105C,124C,305C 'public':307C 'react':145C 'record':141C 'remark':87C 'repress':310C 'right':44C,60C,291C,316C 'rule':79C,108C,299C 'sacrific':73C,139C,154C,193C 'said':223C 'secur':175C 'see':199C 'share':89C 'sowor':7A,53C,84C,149C,188C 'speak':209C 'sponsor':131C 'stand':211C 'stay':142C 'still':40B,271C 'stress':160C 'struggl':76C,163C,216C,292C 'tall':212C 'three':158C 'tribut':56C 'unborn':6A 'veteran':58C 'video':91C,113C,148C 'violat':313C 'wide':130C 'wrote':189C 'year':296C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":6,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":29,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":29,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":29,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":8,"share_count":6}},{"id":"1fa9a9a7-9e1d-47e5-9a2a-8c09bd7f9ccd","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore, Fusika to Address Press on Suspension of Criminal Case.","slug":"sowore-fusika-to-address-press-on-suspension-of-criminal-case","body":"\n\nMembers of the press are invited to a media briefing by Omoyele Sowore and his lead counsel, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, to address the latest developments surrounding Mr. Sowore’s criminal case over his description of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a “criminal.”\n\nThe briefing comes following a statement by the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) Tosin Ajayi announcing the suspension of the trial until the 2027 General Elections.\n\nMr. Sowore and his lead counsel, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, will address the press on the suspension of the case.\n\nBriefing Details:\n\nDate: Monday, August 31, 2026\nTime: 12:00 noon\nVenue: CitiPoint Chambers, Address: 11, C.I.P.M. Avenue (CitiPoint Chambers), Off Obafemi Awolowo Way, Ikeja Central Business District, Alausa-Ikeja.\n\nMembers of the press are cordially invited to attend and cover the briefing.","excerpt":"The briefing comes following a statement by the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) Tosin Ajayi announcing the suspension of the trial until the 2027 General Elections.","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-31T08:38:27.274Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/6fc04a5d-19f9-426d-bd89-c8285c92da88.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-31T08:38:27.274Z","updated_at":"2026-08-31T19:12:20.067Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'00':147C '11':153C '12':146C '2026':144C '2027':39B,114C '31':143C 'address':4A,65C,129C,152C 'adeyinka':59C,123C 'ahm':81C 'ajayi':30B,105C 'alausa':167C 'alausa-ikeja':166C 'announc':31B,106C 'attend':177C 'august':142C 'avenu':155C 'awolowo':160C 'bola':80C 'brief':12B,51C,87C,138C,181C 'busi':164C 'c.i.p.m':154C 'case':10A,74C,137C 'central':163C 'chamber':151C,157C 'citipoint':150C,156C 'come':13B,88C 'cordial':174C 'counsel':58C,122C 'cover':179C 'crimin':9A,73C,85C 'date':140C 'depart':24B,99C 'descript':77C 'detail':139C 'develop':68C 'director':20B,95C 'director-gener':19B,94C 'district':165C 'dss':28B,103C 'elect':41B,116C 'follow':14B,89C 'fusika':2A,62C,126C 'general':21B,40B,96C,115C 'ikeja':162C,168C 'invit':47C,175C 'latest':67C 'lead':57C,121C 'media':50C 'member':42C,169C 'monday':141C 'mr':70C,117C 'noon':148C 'obafemi':159C 'olumid':61C,125C 'olumide-fusika':60C,124C 'omoyel':53C 'presid':79C 'press':5A,45C,131C,172C 'san':63C,127C 'servic':27B,102C 'sowor':1A,54C,71C,118C 'state':26B,101C 'statement':16B,91C 'surround':69C 'suspens':7A,33B,108C,134C 'time':145C 'tinubu':82C 'tosin':29B,104C 'trial':36B,111C 'venu':149C 'way':161C","type":"news","category":"event","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":4,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":37,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":37,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":37,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":8,"share_count":4}},{"id":"4b1f518d-d00c-4045-87e4-842aba276441","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"‘Lawless DSS forced to eat humble pie’ — Sowore reacts as agency moves to suspend cybercrime case till after 2027 election","slug":"lawless-dss-forced-to-eat-humble-pie-sowore-reacts-as-agency-moves-to-suspend-cybercrime-case-till-after-2027-election","body":"\n\nHuman rights activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has reacted to the decision by the Department of State Services to suspend the cybercrime case against him until after the 2027 presidential election.\n\nSowore, in a statement shared on his social media platforms on Sunday morning, described the development as a victory for resistance and said the DSS had been forced to abandon what he described as a “useless charge.”\n\nThe DSS has reportedly directed its private counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, to seek an adjournment of the case until after the 2027 presidential election, which is scheduled for January 16, 2027.\n\nAccording to reports, the decision followed a meeting on August 20 between the DSS Director-General, Tosin Ajayi, the agency’s legal directorate and its senior counsel. A source familiar with the DSS legal team said the decision was taken to allow Sowore, who is the AAC presidential candidate, to participate fully in the electioneering process without the court proceedings becoming a hindrance to his campaign.\n\nThe DSS is expected to formally communicate the position to the Federal High Court when regular sittings resume on September 14, 2026, after the annual judicial vacation. The agency has also reportedly directed its legal team to review similar cases involving other political candidates.\n\nReacting to the development, Sowore said the decision showed that resistance against oppression could prevail, insisting that he and his supporters had refused to be intimidated by the security agency.\n\nQuoting American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., Sowore wrote, “A man can't ride you unless your back is bent.”\n\nHe added that oppression survives when people are forced into submission and accept it. According to the AAC candidate, his latest development was another indication that his resistance to successive governments and security agencies had continued to yield results.\n\n“The lawless DSS has now been forced to eat humble pie,” Sowore said.\n\n“We told them from day one that this was an exercise in futility. We have fought too many of these battles to be intimidated now and we have prevailed again and again.”\n\nSowore also linked the current case to his long-standing opposition to successive Nigerian governments, saying he had remained involved in activism and political resistance from the era of military rule through the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari and the current administration of President Bola Tinubu.\n\n“From the brutal days of military dictatorship, through the dark years of Buhari, and now under the Tinubu regime, we have remained standing, resisting, organizing, and fighting,” he said.\n\nHe, however, called on the DSS to go beyond suspending the case and withdraw the charges completely. Sowore demanded that the agency apologise to Nigerians over what he described as an abuse of power, return all his phones and electronic devices, and pay the ₦3 million fines imposed against it by the courts.\n\nHe also demanded the immediate return of the phones and drone seized from the Journalist who covers his day to day activities, Zainab Sodiq.\n\n“The DSS must immediately withdraw this useless charge, apologize to our people for this abuse of power, return all my phones and electronic devices, and pay the ₦3 million in fines imposed against it by the courts,” he said.\n\n“The DSS must also immediately return the phones and drone unlawfully seized from my assistant, Zainab Sodiq.”\n\nSowore concluded by reaffirming his commitment to his political and human rights activities, \"Our struggle remains firm. Our resolve is unbroken. We are unstoppable,” he said.","excerpt":"“We told them from day one that this was an exercise in futility. We have fought too many of these battles to be intimidated now and we have prevailed again and again...”","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-30T10:18:01.141Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/28cc4932-9dbf-4f99-b661-1441fe5df139.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-30T10:18:01.141Z","updated_at":"2026-08-31T02:50:26.008Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'14':242C '16':153C '20':165C '2026':243C '2027':19A,84C,145C,154C '3':523C,583C 'aac':202C,335C 'abandon':116C 'abus':510C,570C 'accept':330C 'accord':155C,332C 'action':59C 'activ':424C,553C,624C 'activist':52C 'ad':319C 'adjourn':138C 'administr':436C,445C 'african':58C 'agenc':11A,175C,250C,295C,351C,500C 'ajayi':173C 'akinlolu':132C 'allow':197C 'also':252C,403C,533C,598C 'american':297C 'annual':246C 'anoth':341C 'apolog':564C 'apologis':501C 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Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has demanded justice for an Enugu family whose lives, he said, were devastated following the unlawful arrest and prolonged detention of a couple by the Department of State Services.\n\nSowore made the call on Saturday after meeting Sunday Ifedi, an Enugu native, and his daughter, Merit, following the #EnuguMarathon2026.\n\nAccording to Sowore, Ifedi and his wife, Calista, were arrested by the DSS in 2021 after being accused of being members or operatives of the Indigenous People of Biafra during the regime of former President Muhammadu Buhari.\n\nHe stated that the couple were subsequently taken to the Wawa Barracks detention facility in Niger State, where Calista later died in custody. Sowore said the DSS initially denied that it had arrested or detained the couple, prompting him, Amnesty International and lawyer Deji Adeyanju to intensify efforts to establish their whereabouts and secure their freedom.\n\n“The lawless DSS initially denied that they had even arrested them. We kept searching and pushing until they were eventually located,” Sowore said.\n\nHe said the search eventually led to the discovery of the couple, but by then the consequences of their detention had become irreversible.\n\nAccording to Sowore, Calista did not survive her detention, while Sunday spent more than four years in custody. He further revealed that the DSS later acknowledged that Calista had been wrongly accused.\n\n“Tragically, Calista never made it out alive. She died in custody at Wawa Barracks and was buried in a shallow grave,” Sowore said.\n\nThe AAC presidential candidate also highlighted the impact of the couple’s detention on their children, particularly their daughter, Merit, who he said was only a teenager when her parents were taken away. Sowore said Merit and her siblings were suddenly left without both parents and were forced to abandon their education as a result of the situation.\n\nHe described the case as an example of the devastating human consequences of unlawful arrest, prolonged detention and the abuse of state power.\n\n“Think about the human cost of this monumental injustice: a woman lost her life in custody; a husband lost his wife and more than four years of his freedom; and their children lost their mother, their father's presence, and crucial years of their education,” he said.\n\nSowore stressed that cases involving unlawful detention should not be viewed simply as violations against individuals, arguing that the consequences often extend to entire families.\n\n“Behind every unlawful arrest, prolonged detention and abuse of state power are real human beings and families whose lives can be permanently destroyed,” he said.\n\nHe also condemned the lack of accountability in the exercise of state security powers, saying Nigeria could not continue to operate in a manner where those wielding government power were not held responsible for their actions.\n\n“Nigeria cannot continue to be an unjust nation operated by hooligans in government who wield state power without accountability,” Sowore said.\n\nHe demanded justice for Calista, Sunday, Merit and the entire Ifedi family, while calling for those responsible for the unlawful detention, abuse and death in custody to be identified and held accountable.\n\n“There must be justice for Calista, Sunday, Merit and their entire family. Those responsible for unlawful detention, abuse and death in custody must be identified and held accountable,” he said.\n\nSowore concluded that justice must go beyond public condemnation, insisting that concrete accountability must follow, “Justice must not only be demanded; it must be done,” he said.","excerpt":"...Ifedi and his wife, Calista, were arrested by the DSS in 2021 after being accused of being members or operatives of the Indigenous People of Biafra during the regime of former President Muhammadu Buhari...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-30T08:42:49.315Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/9fc5f4ae-cf2a-4eb2-9403-863bef154f70.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-30T08:42:49.315Z","updated_at":"2026-08-31T02:44:23.970Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2021':34B,130C 'aac':311C 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Amaechi","slug":"this-is-the-rivers-state-they-built-sowore-reacts-to-flooded-nba-conference-venue-knocks-amaechi","body":"\n\nPresidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, Omoyele Sowore, has reacted to a viral video showing what appeared to be a flooded section of the venue of the Nigerian Bar Association’s 66th Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.\n\nSowore, in a post on his social media handles on Saturday night, used the video to criticise former Rivers State Governor and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, over his record in office.\n\nThe reaction came days after Amaechi defended his record while participating in a political session at the NBA conference, where he challenged Sowore to inspect projects he said were executed during his administration in Rivers State.\n\nAmaechi had told lawyers at the conference to take Sowore around Rivers State, insisting that he had constructed several roads and schools, \"Where are Rivers lawyers? Please take Sowore around. Sowore, I said I built that road. I built this road. I built this primary school. I built that primary school,” Amaechi said during the heated exchange.\n\nHe also asked Sowore to consider his record as Minister of Transportation, citing the Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja-Kaduna railway projects. The exchange later became heated, with Amaechi telling Sowore, “When politicians are talking, close your mouth.”\n\nReacting to the viral footage of the flooded venue, Sowore recalled Amaechi’s claims and questioned the state of infrastructure in Port Harcourt.\n\n“When Rotimi Amaechi stood at the NBA Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt boasting, ‘Take Sowore around Rivers State, I built this road, I built that road, I built this school, I built that school,’ he may have forgotten to look around him,” Sowore wrote.\n\n“This was the venue of the very NBA conference where he made those boasts,” he added.\n\nSowore further urged Nigerians to look beyond the projects politicians claim to have executed and examine the current condition of the communities they governed.\n\n“Look around Port Harcourt. Look at the roads. Look at the infrastructure. Look at the condition of a state they governed and claimed to have transformed,” he said.\n\n“This is the Rivers State they built,” Sowore concluded.\n\nThe clash between Sowore and Amaechi occurred during the NBA’s 66th Annual General Conference, themed “Beyond Limits,” which was held in Port Harcourt from August 21 to 28, 2026. The conference brought together lawyers, political figures and other stakeholders for discussions on governance, security, policing, elections and other national issues.\n\nThe exchange between the two attracted significant attention, with Amaechi defending his record in government while Sowore continued to question the performance of political leaders who had previously held public office.\n\nThe latest exchange has now shifted attention from the political debate at the conference to the condition of the conference venue and wider infrastructure in Port Harcourt, with Sowore using the viral footage to reinforce his criticism of Amaechi’s record as a former governor of Rivers State.","excerpt":"The reaction came days after Amaechi defended his record while participating in a political session at the NBA conference, where he challenged Sowore to inspect projects he said were executed during his administration in Rivers State...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-28T22:43:17.824Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/d08d8e4b-e289-441c-bab5-44f2fd15bfbd.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-28T22:43:17.824Z","updated_at":"2026-08-29T09:56:26.111Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2026':434C '21':431C '28':433C '66th':86C,416C 'aac':60C 'abuja':240C 'abuja-kaduna':239C 'action':58C 'ad':343C 'administr':49B,160C 'african':57C 'also':222C 'amaechi':16A,22B,122C,133C,164C,215C,250C,271C,285C,410C,465C,525C 'annual':87C,290C,417C 'appear':71C 'around':174C,193C,299C,324C,369C 'ask':223C 'associ':84C 'attent':463C,493C 'attract':461C 'august':430C 'bar':83C 'becam':247C 'beyond':350C,421C 'boast':296C,341C 'brought':437C 'built':7A,198C,202C,206C,211C,303C,307C,311C,315C,402C 'came':19B,130C 'candid':54C 'challeng':38B,149C 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presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, Omoyele Sowore, has arrived in Enugu ahead of his scheduled appearance on Afia TV Enugu’s By 12:30 Show.\n\nSowore is expected to discuss preparations for the 2027 general elections, good governance and other political issues affecting Nigeria during the programme.\n\nThe interview is scheduled for Thursday at 12:30 p.m. and will be streamed live on YouTube through Afia TV Enugu.\n\nHis visit to Enugu comes as political activities and conversations around the 2027 elections continue to gather momentum across the country.\n\nThe discussion is expected to focus on Nigeria’s political future, leadership, governance and the need for reforms. Sowore is also expected to share his views on the challenges facing the country and his expectations ahead of the 2027 elections.\n\nThe AAC candidate, who contested the 2023 presidential election, has remained active in national political discussions and has continued to advocate political and economic reforms.\n\nOn his arrival in Enugu on Friday morning, Sowore was welcomed by supporters who gathered to receive him. Reacting to the warm reception, he wrote on his social media handles:\n\n“Hello, Enugu!\n\n“We love you all here! The energy, the warmth, the spirit, unmistakable!\n\n“Enugu, we are here to TAKE IT BACK!”\n\nSowore’s appearance on Afia TV is expected to again, give viewers an opportunity to hear his position on the 2027 elections, good governance, leadership and other issues shaping Nigeria’s political space.","excerpt":"Sowore’s appearance on Afia TV is expected to again, give viewers an opportunity to hear his position on the 2027 elections, good governance, leadership and other issues shaping Nigeria’s political space.","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-28T09:34:55.622Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/e27c055f-0799-4681-b323-7b5db91dfec3.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-28T09:34:55.622Z","updated_at":"2026-08-28T13:54:41.625Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'12':73C,105C '2023':186C 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'youtub':114C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":2,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":26,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":26,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":26,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":13,"share_count":2}},{"id":"63c0dc0b-1e89-442a-bb03-31e6bd727341","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"‘Our stance on fuel subsidy sent Tinubu regime scampering, Atiku scrambled to catch up’ — Sowore","slug":"our-stance-on-fuel-subsidy-sent-tinubu-regime-scampering-atiku-scrambled-to-catch-up-sowore","body":"\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, Omoyele Sowore, has reiterated that his party’s opposition to the removal of fuel subsidy forced the regime of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu into a difficult position, while stating that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar changed his position on the issue to catch up with the AAC.\n\nSowore made the claim in a statement shared on his social media handles on Friday, days after he and other presidential candidates debated the issue of fuel subsidy at the 2026 Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.\n\nThe AAC candidate also accused Atiku and his supporters of attempting to rewrite the history of the subsidy debate and present themselves as the leading opposition to the Tinubu regime.\n\n“Don’t let Atiku Abubakar and his clowning group deceive you about fuel subsidy or pretend that they are responsible for the panic now gripping the failed Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu regime,” Sowore wrote.\n\nAccording to him, it was the position he presented at the NBA conference that put pressure on the Tinubu administration, “It was our firm and uncompromising stance at the Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt that sent the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu regime scampering,” he said.\n\nSowore maintained that the AAC had been consistent in its opposition to the removal of fuel subsidy, arguing that his party had made its position clear before other major opposition politicians began speaking on the issue.\n\n“Only the African Action Congress (AAC) made its position absolutely clear that we will not remove fuel subsidy,” he said.\n\nHe stated further that Atiku changed his position shortly after the NBA conference in an attempt to align himself with the position already taken by the AAC, “In fact, by the time we returned from Port Harcourt, Atiku had already changed his position and was scrambling to catch up,” Sowore added.\n\nThe controversy over fuel subsidy has become a major issue in the build-up to the 2027 presidential election. Atiku, who is now the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has proposed restoring fuel subsidy if elected president. This represents a change from his position during the 2023 presidential election, when he advocated the removal of the subsidy. A recent report by The Nation documented Atiku’s changing position on the issue.\n\nAt the NBA conference in Port Harcourt, the proposal triggered disagreement among opposition politicians. Former Anambra State governor and presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, rejected Atiku’s proposal to restore the subsidy, arguing that subsidy removal remained necessary.\n\nSowore, meanwhile, maintained his opposition to the removal of fuel subsidy. During the conference, he argued that the subsidy debate had continued for decades without delivering the promised benefits to Nigerians. He questioned who actually benefited from government subsidies, arguing that ordinary Nigerians had continued to bear the consequences of higher fuel and transportation costs.\n\nSowore accused successive governments of subsidising the lifestyle of political elites rather than protecting ordinary Nigerians. The debate has also put pressure on the Tinubu regime, which removed petrol subsidy shortly after President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023. The decision led to a sharp increase in petrol prices and contributed to rising living costs.","excerpt":"“Only the African Action Congress (AAC) made its position absolutely clear that we will not remove fuel subsidy...”","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-28T04:57:20.973Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/829cebfe-ee87-450b-b0c2-d7243cb27c07.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-28T04:57:20.974Z","updated_at":"2026-08-28T08:02:56.104Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2023':404C,564C '2026':121C '2027':371C 'aac':21B,42C,90C,135C,251C,288C,329C 'absolut':25B,292C 'abubakar':78C,168C 'accord':198C 'accus':138C,527C 'action':19B,40C,286C 'actual':505C 'ad':353C 'adc':386C 'administr':217C 'advoc':409C 'african':18B,39C,285C,383C 'ahm':64C,193C,241C 'align':320C 'alreadi':325C,342C 'also':137C,545C 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'wrote':197C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":2,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":17,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":17,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":17,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":6,"share_count":2}},{"id":"e133a9a3-e521-42f5-9d4c-6fae080aec88","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"2027: Sowore vows to shut down Nigeria, resist attempt to steal his mandate even if it costs his life","slug":"2027-sowore-vows-to-shut-down-nigeria-resist-attempt-to-steal-his-mandate-even-if-it-costs-his-life","body":"\n\nAfrican Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has vowed to resist any attempt to deny him victory if he wins the 2027 presidential election, saying he is ready to defend his mandate even if it costs him his life.\n\nSowore made the declaration while speaking at a plenary session of the ongoing Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.\n\nThe AAC candidate also warned that he would not accept an election he considers unfair or lacking credibility, saying his supporters would resist any attempt to impose a different candidate on Nigerians.\n\nSowore criticised politicians who, after claiming to have won elections in the past, failed to defend their mandates and instead left the matter for the courts to decide.\n\nHe recalled a question raised by former Kogi State Senator Dino Melaye during the 2023 election about how candidates would protect their votes.\n\n“Senator Dino Melaye, my former friend. Yes. And he was asking, and I agree with him truthfully, that how are we going to protect our votes,” Sowore said.\n\nHe stated that some politicians who claimed to have won in 2023 abandoned their mandates without doing enough to defend them.\n\n“In case you don't know, there are people in this hall, in large numbers, in 2023, who voted in an election, said they won, and abandoned the mandate. They did nothing to fight for their mandates,” he said.\n\nSowore urged Nigerians not to repeat what he described as the mistake of voting for politicians who would fail to defend their mandates.\n\n“Don't make that mistake of voting for those kinds of people again in your life,” he added.\n\nThe AAC candidate then issued a strong warning against any attempt to take away a presidential mandate he believed he had legitimately won.\n\n“I am standing here. If anybody takes a vote on an election I won, the person will not be president of Nigeria, I can assure you that. Even if it takes my life,” Sowore vowed.\n\nHe also rejected the idea of relying on the judiciary to determine the winner of elections, arguing that voters should decide the outcome at the polling units.\n\n“It is the reason why we must not rely on judges and lawyers to determine our elections,” Sowore said.\n\n“We don't want our elections to go to your courts again. We must determine the winner of the election on the day of the election, so that the only thing a lawyer will do in an election is to help us swear in the winner of the election. Nothing more, nothing less.”\n\nSowore further warned that Nigerians would take action if the 2027 election failed to meet the required standard of fairness and credibility.\n\n“If we can't get that, we shut down the country until we get the right leader who won an election,” he said.\n\n“There is no way we can win if we don't fight. And there is no way we can lose, since we are fighters.”\n\nHe added, “Yes, we will win. No, we will not accede if it's not fair and credible.\", Sowore added.\n\n\n\n","excerpt":"“I am standing here. If anybody takes a vote on an election I won, the person will not be president of Nigeria, I can assure you that. Even if it takes my life...\"","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-27T04:04:34.274Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/soworenow/general/015dd595-c54d-4062-ae75-cd10d3aff2c7.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-27T04:04:34.274Z","updated_at":"2026-08-27T15:06:34.754Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'2023':190C,238C,264C '2027':1A,74C,495C 'aac':117C,329C 'abandon':239C,274C 'acced':564C 'accept':125C 'action':54C,492C 'ad':327C,555C,573C 'african':53C 'agre':212C 'also':119C,387C 'annual':108C 'anybodi':25B,356C 'argu':402C 'ask':209C 'associ':107C 'assur':44B,375C 'attempt':9A,65C,140C,338C 'away':341C 'bar':106C 'believ':346C 'candid':57C,118C,145C,194C,330C 'case':249C 'claim':153C,233C 'confer':110C 'congress':55C 'consid':129C 'cost':17A,88C 'countri':517C 'court':173C,442C 'credibl':133C,506C,571C 'criticis':149C 'day':454C 'decid':175C,406C 'declar':95C 'defend':82C,163C,246C,307C 'deni':67C 'describ':295C 'determin':397C,427C,446C 'differ':144C 'dino':186C,200C 'elect':31B,76C,127C,157C,191C,269C,362C,401C,429C,437C,451C,457C,469C,480C,496C,527C 'enough':244C 'even':14A,47B,85C,378C 'fail':161C,305C,497C 'fair':504C,569C 'fight':281C,541C 'fighter':553C 'former':182C,203C 'friend':204C 'general':109C 'get':511C,520C 'go':220C,439C 'hall':259C 'harcourt':113C 'help':472C 'idea':390C 'impos':142C 'instead':167C 'issu':332C 'judg':423C 'judiciari':395C 'kind':319C 'know':253C 'kogi':183C 'lack':132C 'larg':261C 'lawyer':425C,464C 'leader':523C 'left':168C 'legitim':349C 'less':484C 'life':19A,52B,91C,325C,383C 'lose':549C 'made':93C 'make':312C 'mandat':13A,84C,165C,241C,276C,284C,309C,344C 'matter':170C 'meet':499C 'melay':187C,201C 'mistak':298C,314C 'must':419C,445C 'nigeria':7A,41B,372C 'nigerian':105C,147C,289C,489C 'noth':279C,481C,483C 'number':262C 'omoyel':58C 'ongo':104C 'outcom':408C 'past':160C 'peopl':256C,321C 'person':35B,366C 'plenari':100C 'politician':150C,231C,302C 'poll':411C 'port':112C 'presid':39B,370C 'presidenti':56C,75C,343C 'protect':196C,222C 'question':179C 'rais':180C 'readi':80C 'reason':416C 'recal':177C 'reject':388C 'reli':392C,421C 'repeat':292C 'requir':501C 'resist':8A,63C,138C 'right':522C 'river':114C 'said':226C,270C,286C,431C,529C 'say':77C,134C 'senat':185C,199C 'session':101C 'shut':5A,514C 'sinc':550C 'sowor':2A,59C,92C,148C,225C,287C,384C,430C,485C,572C 'speak':97C 'stand':22B,353C 'standard':502C 'state':115C,184C,228C 'steal':11A 'strong':334C 'support':136C 'swear':474C 'take':26B,50B,340C,357C,381C,491C 'thing':462C 'truth':215C 'unfair':130C 'unit':412C 'urg':288C 'us':473C 'victori':69C 'vote':28B,198C,224C,266C,300C,316C,359C 'voter':404C 'vow':3A,61C,385C 'want':435C 'warn':120C,335C,487C 'way':533C,546C 'win':72C,536C,559C 'winner':399C,448C,477C 'without':242C 'won':33B,156C,236C,272C,350C,364C,525C 'would':123C,137C,195C,304C,490C 'yes':205C,556C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":2,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":28,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":28,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":28,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":17,"share_count":2}},{"id":"5f940762-3105-46c6-9f38-7433ca31895f","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"‘You have four refineries in Nigeria, none is working — I’ll make them work’ — Sowore","slug":"you-have-four-refineries-in-nigeria-none-is-working-i-ll-make-them-work-sowore","body":"\n\nPresidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has promised to revive Nigeria’s four refineries if elected president in the 2027 general elections, saying local refining would help reduce the cost of fuel and make subsidy more sustainable.\n\nSowore made the statement during an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday while explaining his position on fuel subsidy and his plans to address the economic hardship facing Nigerians.\n\nThe AAC candidate said he would restore fuel subsidy if elected, stating that its removal had worsened the economic situation and increased the burden on Nigerians.\n\n“My plan for subsidy is that it will not be removed. So, it’s corruption. The person who can sustain subsidy and support for the poor, and who can at the same time fight corruption, is the person you should go with—not the person who was part of those looting the subsidy funds before, who had benefited from sabotaging the masses, who now claims that the masses have to be blamed,” Sowore said.\n\nHe said the problem with subsidy was not the policy itself but the corruption and leakages associated with its implementation.\n\nAccording to him, his administration would ensure that money meant to subsidise fuel actually benefits Nigerians instead of being diverted through fraudulent importation and other corrupt practices.\n\nSowore said his proposed subsidy policy and its funding mechanism were already contained in his manifesto and the SoworeNow application, which he said provides details of his plans for the country.\n\n“We have put this on paper. I have manifestos. By the way, I have developed an application—the only presidential candidate with an app, it’s called SoworeNow. You can go there, sign up, and all of this is explained: A, B, C, D, where we will get the money from to sustain subsidy and how subsidy will work,” he said.\n\nExplaining how he plans to make subsidy sustainable, Sowore said his administration would revive Nigeria’s four refineries and promote local refining of petroleum products. He argued that increasing local refining would reduce the country’s dependence on imported fuel and save government funds.\n\n“You have four refineries in Nigeria, none of which are working. I can make them work. I will make it work because if you are refining locally, even if you are saving 10 Naira per gallon, that’s a huge amount of money considering that you are consuming about 60 million liters of fuel on a daily basis,” he said.\n\nSowore also promised to end the manipulation and fraudulent practices that had characterised the fuel subsidy regime, “I’m restoring subsidy, I made that clear. What will be missing in restoration is that nobody will have a chance to import fuel that did not arrive here,” he said.\n\nThe former Sahara Reporters publisher recalled his experience as a journalist investigating corruption in the petroleum sector, saying he had been involved in exposing fraudulent subsidy claims.\n\n“I was one of the major journalists in my time with Sahara Reporters who uncovered the first major scandal around subsidy ‘tips,’ as we used to call them. We found out during that period that there was a ship that had capsized 10 years before that was recorded as bringing in petrol to Nigeria,” Sowore said.\n\nHe said such practices would not be allowed under his administration, promising that money allocated to subsidy would be properly accounted for, “We will make sure that every dime spent on subsidy is not stolen; it gets to the people. You remove the cabal, subsidy is in order; you keep them in place, subsidy is out of order,” he added.\n\nSpeaking about his experience and suitability for the presidency, Sowore said his years of activism and journalism had given him sufficient understanding of Nigeria's political system and the challenges facing the country. He said leadership should not be measured only by previous government positions, but by a person's values, vision and commitment to solving national problems.\n\n“Your experience is derived from what you believe in, what’s your passion, what’s your goal in life. Mine was to bring about good governance and to establish democracy,” he said.\n\nSowore also referred to his long-standing opposition to military rule and his involvement in campaigns for democratic governance.\n\n“If I didn’t fight for democracy, Rotimi Amaechi would not be standing there yesterday. Leadership is about passion, mission, and vision,” he said.\n\nHe said activists were offered opportunities to join government during the military era but that he rejected such arrangements because he believed they could compromise those seeking to challenge the system, \"We were approached that you can change things from within, and we made it very clear, having had experience—that’s why I tell you I have a lot of experience with these people—that whenever they lure you into that kind of arrangement, they want to bury your conscience,” he said.\n\nSowore described the system as “the cemetery of human conscience”, arguing that entering such arrangements could eventually lead to compromise.\n\nReflecting on his participation at the Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference, Sowore said he believed more Nigerians were beginning to understand his political position and his consistency on national issues. He said he had remained committed to the same principles over the years and urged Nigerians to reconsider their political choices ahead of the 2027 elections.\n\n“Yesterday, I walked out of that hall yesterday very convinced that Nigerians have seen what I’ve always been. I never change. I’ve never changed. I’ve always been like this,” he said.\n\nSowore said he would continue to engage Nigerians and explain his plans, urging them to reject what he described as “renewed hopelessness”.\n\n“But we must keep having the opportunity to talk, to reach out to more people, that they need to change trajectory. There is somebody out here amongst you who can make the change you are looking for happen—not renewed hopelessness,” he said.","excerpt":"Sowore also promised to end the manipulation and fraudulent practices that had characterised the fuel subsidy regime, “I’m restoring subsidy, I made that clear. What will be missing in restoration is that nobody will have a chance to import fuel that did not arrive here,” he said.","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-26T10:09:04.383Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/general/3747d194-e6cf-4ddf-82c0-0c02df8923e1.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-26T10:09:04.386Z","updated_at":"2026-09-03T20:41:24.916Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'10':448C,593C '2027':86C,959C '60':465C 'aac':134C 'accord':253C 'account':627C 'action':69C 'activ':681C 'activist':803C 'actual':266C 'ad':666C 'address':127C 'administr':257C,383C,617C 'african':68C 'ahead':956C 'alloc':621C 'allow':614C 'alreadi':291C 'also':17B,477C,758C 'alway':978C,989C 'amaechi':785C 'amongst':1043C 'amount':456C 'annual':913C 'app':334C 'applic':299C,327C 'approach':834C 'argu':398C,894C 'aris':112C 'around':570C 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'yesterday':791C,961C,968C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":5,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":35,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":35,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":35,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":11,"share_count":5}},{"id":"4e078bc0-0d61-4e2c-b91b-e1d5d8f47af5","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore joins Kay Hikers Club as it marks one year","slug":"sowore-joins-kay-hikers-club-as-it-marks-one-year","body":"\nThe presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, is set to join members of the Kay Hikers Club on Sunday as the club marks the first anniversary of its Port Harcourt Coffee Hangout.\n\nThe anniversary event is scheduled for 4pm at Cafe One, Deborah Lawson House, off Sani Abacha Road, GRA Phase 3, Port Harcourt.\n\nSowore, who is the special guest at the gathering, is expected to join members of the hiking community for an evening of social interaction, networking and conversation.\n\nThe event, tagged “Port Harcourt Coffee Hangout,” is themed “Connect. Sip. Unwind.”\n\nSowore’s participation comes amid a busy schedule of engagements in Port Harcourt, including his invitation to the 66th Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association.\n\n<strong>Sowore at NBA conference</strong>\n\nThe NBA conference, themed “Beyond Limits,” is taking place from August 21 to 28 at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Elekahia, Port Harcourt. The association invited Sowore to participate as a panelist in a session titled “Power Play: Politics, People, and Nigeria’s Future.”\n\nThe session is expected to focus on major national issues, including employment, insecurity, the economy, justice, democratic governance and Nigeria’s future.\n\nThe conference has brought together legal practitioners, policymakers, jurists, thought leaders and other stakeholders to discuss issues affecting the country and its development.\n\nFormer Liberian President George Weah is billed to deliver the keynote address at the conference.\n\nNBA profile of Sowore\n\nIn its profile of the AAC presidential candidate, the NBA described Sowore as an activist, journalist, pro-democracy campaigner and publisher of Sahara Reporters.\n\nThe association said Sowore began his activism as a student of the University of Lagos in 1989 and became president of the institution’s Students’ Union in 1992.\n\nAccording to the NBA, his student activism included campaigns on students’ welfare, opposition to cult-related violence and resistance to the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.\n\nThe association also noted that Sowore was expelled from the university twice during his period of student activism.\n\nHe founded Sahara Reporters in 2006, with the platform becoming known for reporting on corruption, transparency and issues that received limited attention from mainstream media.\n\nThe NBA further stated that Sowore taught African politics and history for eight years at the School of Visual Arts and the City University of New York before returning to Nigeria to pursue a political career.\n\nIt described him as a two-time presidential candidate who has continued to advocate accountability, democratic governance, human rights and social justice.","excerpt":"Sowore’s participation comes amid a busy schedule of engagements in Port Harcourt, including his invitation to the 66th Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association.","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-23T10:02:02.212Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/general/dc8a09fe-ba5c-4293-9964-2ccc0aabb6b0.jpg"},"created_at":"2026-08-23T10:02:02.212Z","updated_at":"2026-08-24T05:39:22.159Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'12':351C '1989':313C '1992':324C '1993':352C '2006':378C '21':176C '28':178C '3':92C '4pm':79C '66th':29B,152C 'aac':277C 'abacha':88C 'accord':325C 'account':449C 'action':44C 'activ':303C,331C,372C 'activist':286C 'address':264C 'advoc':448C 'affect':247C 'african':43C,405C 'also':357C 'amid':15B,138C 'anniversari':66C,74C 'annual':30B,153C 'annul':347C 'art':417C 'associ':37B,160C,188C,298C,356C 'attent':394C 'august':175C 'bar':36B,159C 'becam':315C 'becom':382C 'began':301C 'beyond':169C 'bill':259C 'brought':233C 'busi':17B,140C 'cafe':81C 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'york':424C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":4,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":51,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":51,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":51,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":11,"share_count":4}},{"id":"02f90d45-6c67-41bb-ae46-28fd38c0265e","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore to speak at NBA 66th annual general conference","slug":"sowore-to-speak-at-nba-66th-annual-general-conference","body":"\n\nThe Nigerian Bar Association has invited the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, to speak at its 66th Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.\n\nThe conference, themed “Beyond Limits,” is scheduled to take place from August 21 to 28, 2026, at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Elekahia, Port Harcourt.\n\nThe invitation was contained in a letter dated July 6, 2026, and addressed to Sowore by the NBA.\n\nAccording to the association, the annual conference will bring together jurists, policymakers, thought leaders and industry experts to discuss major national and global issues.\n\n“On behalf of the Nigerian Bar Association, we write to invite you to speak at our 66th Annual General Conference scheduled to hold from 21st to 28th August 2026, at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Elekehia, Port Harcourt, Rivers State,” the letter stated.\n\nThe NBA said the conference would feature former Liberian President George Weah as the keynote speaker, alongside other prominent speakers and participants from the legal profession and other sectors.\n\n“The Conference will feature a keynote address to be delivered by His Excellency, George Weah, former President of Liberia, alongside a distinguished lineup of speakers and participants from across the legal profession and beyond,” it said.\n\nThe association specifically invited Sowore to participate as a panelist in a session titled “Power Play: Politics, People, and Nigeria's Future.”\n\nThe session is expected to examine key issues affecting Nigerians, including employment, security, the economy, justice and the future of democracy in the country.\n\n“We specifically invite you as a panelist on the session, ‘Power Play: Politics, People, and Nigeria's Future,’ which will examine critical national issues, including jobs, security, the economy, justice, and the future of Nigeria's democracy,” the NBA said.\n\nThe association said the broader conference would also focus on economic growth, industry and trade development, foreign exchange regulation, legal sector development and Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global economy.\n\nIt added that participants would discuss contemporary social justice issues while creating opportunities for professional networking and knowledge sharing.\n\n\n\nIn a separate speaker profile released as part of the conference publicity, the NBA described Sowore as a Nigerian activist, pro-democracy campaigner, journalist and publisher of Sahara Reporters.\n\nThe association also identified him as the founder of the African Action Congress and convener of the Take It Back Movement.\n\nThe NBA traced Sowore’s activism to his days as a student at the University of Lagos, where it said he began his activism in 1989 and later became president of the institution’s Students’ Union in 1992.\n\nAccording to the association, Sowore’s student activism focused on issues including students’ welfare, opposition to cult-related violence and the struggle against the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.\n\nIt said his activities during the period resulted in his expulsion from the University of Lagos on two occasions.\n\nThe NBA also described Sowore as a two-time presidential candidate and the current presidential candidate of the AAC.\n\n“Sowore is a two-time presidential candidate and the current presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC),” the profile stated.\n\nIt added that he had remained consistent in his opposition to abuse of power and in his advocacy for accountability, democratic governance and fundamental human rights.\n\n\n\nThe association also highlighted Sowore’s role in establishing Sahara Reporters in 2006.\n\nAccording to the NBA, the online news platform was created to expose corruption, promote transparency and give attention to stories that were often overlooked by mainstream media.\n\nThe association further noted that Sowore taught African politics and history for eight years at the School of Visual Arts and the City University of New York before returning to Nigeria to pursue public office.\n\n“Sowore remains one of Nigeria's most prominent voices for democracy, good governance, and social justice,” the NBA stated.\n\nThe invitation comes as Sowore continues his political activities as the AAC’s presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 general elections.","excerpt":"...Sowore taught African politics and history for eight years at the School of Visual Arts and the City University of New York before returning to Nigeria to pursue public office...","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-20T13:32:03.812Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/general/cd4bd949-d226-4506-9e5a-57bdccd21b27.jpeg"},"created_at":"2026-08-20T13:32:03.812Z","updated_at":"2026-08-23T08:37:26.624Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'12':495C '1989':453C '1992':465C '1993':496C '2006':598C '2026':84C,103C,163C '2027':698C '21':81C '21st':159C '28':83C '28th':161C '6':102C '66th':6A,60C,151C 'aac':537C,556C,691C 'abus':571C 'accord':111C,466C,599C 'account':579C 'across':234C 'action':52C,418C,554C 'activ':433C,451C,473C,502C,688C 'activist':396C 'ad':359C,561C 'address':105C,212C 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'york':31B,652C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":7,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":59,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":59,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":59,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":15,"share_count":7}},{"id":"d4940360-50e3-45bb-80a6-9e6bc266c8a0","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore fires back at Datti Baba-Ahmed over defence of Babangida, says age cannot erase history","slug":"sowore-fires-back-at-datti-baba-ahmed-over-defence-of-babangida-says-age-cannot-erase-history","body":"\n\nThe African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has responded to former Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, over his criticism of Sowore’s comments on former military ruler, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.\n\nSowore accused Baba-Ahmed of attempting to “whitewash” Babangida’s record and argued that the former military ruler’s advanced age should not prevent Nigerians from examining the decisions and actions taken during his years in power.\n\nSowore said he was initially unaware of Baba-Ahmed’s article published in the print edition of Daily Trust, but later read it after being alerted by Baba-Ahmed’s elder brother, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, whom he said he met at a National Peace Committee event on Tuesday.\n\nAccording to Sowore, he was surprised to discover that Baba-Ahmed had written what he described as a strong response to his comments on Babangida.\n\nAddressing Baba-Ahmed’s defence of the former military ruler, Sowore said his criticism had nothing to do with Babangida’s age.\n\n“First, I did not attack Ibrahim Babangida because he is 85 years old. My criticism was about his record in power and what his decisions did to Nigeria,” Sowore said.\n\nHe added that age should not erase a person’s historical record, arguing that people who committed serious offences while in positions of power could still be held accountable later in life.\n\n“Age does not erase history,” he said, adding that he wished Babangida no illness but would not support any attempt to rewrite his record because of his age.\n\nSowore also responded to Baba-Ahmed’s question about where he would be when he turned 85.\n\n“I do not even know if I will make it to 85. However, wherever I am at 85, Nigerians will have every right to examine what I did with whatever power or influence I possessed,” he said.\n\nHe said he would accept criticism if he ever abused political power, violated citizens’ rights, weakened public institutions or implemented policies that impoverished Nigerians.\n\n“If I betray the democratic will of Nigerians, they should say so. If I impoverish people through disastrous policies, they should say so. If I violate their rights, they should say so. If I leave behind institutions weaker than I found them, history should record it,” Sowore said.\n\nSowore questions Baba-Ahmed’s political relationship with Tinubu\n\nSowore also questioned Baba-Ahmed’s political relationship with members of Nigeria’s political establishment.\n\nHe recalled an encounter with Baba-Ahmed during the 2023 presidential election period at a National Peace Committee event, where he revealed that Baba-Ahmed confronted him over a seat beside then-presidential candidate Peter Obi.\n\nSowore said the situation became more striking when then-All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Bola Tinubu arrived.\n\nAccording to Sowore, Baba-Ahmed, who was then running against Tinubu on the Labour Party ticket, became “extraordinarily deferential” to the APC candidate and addressed him as “Uncle,” “Sir” and “Daddy.”\n\nSowore said the incident reflected what he described as the close relationship among members of Nigeria’s political establishment despite the fierce political battles between their supporters.\n\n“Beneath the public political warfare, Nigeria’s establishment politicians are often far more comfortable with one another than their followers are encouraged to believe,” he said.\n\nHe added that supporters of political parties often fight and insult one another while the politicians themselves maintain cordial relationships behind the scenes.\n\nSowore cites June 12, Dele Giwa and Vatsa\n\nSowore said his criticism of Babangida was based on what he described as the former military ruler’s historical record, including the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.\n\nHe said Babangida’s reported acknowledgement that MKO Abiola won the election made it even more important for Nigerians to continue discussing the events surrounding the annulment.\n\n“Babangida himself has now acknowledged that MKO Abiola won the June 12, 1993 presidential election and has accepted responsibility for decisions taken under his watch,” Sowore said.\n\n“So what exactly is immoral about Nigerians remembering the consequences of that history?”\n\nSowore argued that the annulment of an election could not be reconciled with attempts to portray Babangida primarily as a defender of democracy.\n\n“Democracy means respecting citizens’ votes and their right to choose their leaders,” he said.\n\n“You cannot annul Nigerians’ expressed democratic choice and then have your admirers demand that history remember you principally as a defender of democracy.”\n\nHe also referred to the assassination of journalist Dele Giwa, the execution of military officers over alleged coup plots and the controversy surrounding the death of some military officers during Babangida’s rule.\n\n“If I killed journalist Dele Giwa with a parcel bomb, I should be judged for it,” Sowore said.\n\n“If I am credibly implicated in crashing a plane full of junior army officers because I feared they might become ambitious and overthrow me, the public should interrogate and judge that record.”\n\nSowore also cited the execution of Mamman Vatsa, a former military officer and close associate of Babangida, following a coup trial.\n\n“A man whose regime executed his close friend, Mamman Vatsa, after a coup trial cannot simply have that history erased by the passage of time,” he said.\n\n‘Respect is earned; accountability is mandatory’\n\nSowore rejected Baba-Ahmed’s description of Babangida as a “revered former Nigerian leader,” asking who exactly revered him.\n\n“Datti is entitled to revere him. Millions of Nigerians are equally entitled to remember his disastrous rule differently. History is not determined by the affection of political elites,” he said.\n\nThe AAC candidate also criticised what he described as a culture of excessive respect for political leaders in Nigeria.\n\n“A President is a public servant, not my uncle,” Sowore said.\n\n“A former military ruler is a historical figure whose record must be interrogated, not a family patriarch before whom citizens must kneel or genuflect.”\n\nHe added, “Respect is earned; accountability is mandatory.”\n\nSowore also rejected Baba-Ahmed’s warning about the dangers posed by people seeking to govern Nigeria, arguing that the greater danger was a political culture that continually rehabilitated failed leaders and protected powerful individuals from scrutiny.\n\n“No, Datti. The danger to Nigeria is not citizens who refuse to worship former wicked rulers. The danger is a political culture nurtured by your types that repeatedly rehabilitates failure, protects privilege, and demands silence from anyone who refuses to participate,” he said.\n\n‘Growing old is not immunity from history’\n\nSowore further accused Baba-Ahmed of contradicting his own call for compassion by referring to the possibility of Sowore ending up in prison or an intensive care unit.\n\n“Datti lectures me about compassion while speculating about alcohol, drugs, prison, and ICU,” he said.\n\n“I have already experienced prisons and detention because of my political beliefs and activism. Datti does not need to fantasize about them for me.”\n\nHe maintained that compassion should apply to ordinary Nigerians, protesters, political detainees and workers affected by government policies, rather than being reserved for powerful former leaders.\n\n“Humanity cannot become a doctrine reserved for powerful men when they become old,” Sowore said.\n\nHe said his criticism was not motivated by hatred for Babangida or any other individual but by what he described as the need for strong institutions and accountability.\n\n“It is about systems. It is about accountability. It is about institutions that work for all citizens regardless of class or social status,” he said.\n\nSowore said Nigerians should continue to remember the events and policies associated with Babangida’s years in power, including the June 12 annulment, the killing of Dele Giwa, military executions, political detention, the Structural Adjustment Programme, corruption allegations and the prolonged transition programme.\n\n“We remember June 12. We remember Dele Giwa. We remember military officers executed over alleged coup plots. We remember political detainees sent to rot in prison,” he said.\n\n“We remember the killings. We remember the controversy surrounding the looting of $12 billion from the 1990 Gulf War oil windfall.\n\n“We remember the Structural Adjustment Programme and the economic devastation Nigerians associate with it.\n\n“We remember the corruption. We remember the deception. We remember the self-styled ‘evil genius’ and the political and economic legacy his years in power left behind.\n\n“We remember the endless transition programme. We remember what military dictatorship did to Nigeria.”\n\nSowore concluded by saying that Nigerians should learn from the country’s history instead of treating former leaders as untouchable figures.\n\n“Growing old is a privilege. It is not immunity from history. Nigeria must stop worshipping its rulers and start holding them accountable,” he said.\n\n“That is not hatred. That is how a serious country learns from its past and builds a different future.”","excerpt":"“Growing old is a privilege. It is not immunity from history. Nigeria must stop worshipping its rulers and start holding them accountable...\"","status":"published","published_at":"2026-08-20T06:04:41.942Z","meta":{"cover_image":"https://assets.helloworld.com.ng/general/89e1aa8e-8f59-42e4-80b3-f02e795cbc63.png"},"created_at":"2026-08-20T06:04:41.942Z","updated_at":"2026-08-22T19:38:26.763Z","scheduled_publish_at":null,"seo_title":null,"seo_description":null,"og_image_file_id":null,"twitter_card":"summary","canonical_url":null,"robots_directive":null,"search_vector":"'12':628C,659C,701C,1310C,1335C,1372C '1990':1376C '1993':660C,702C '2023':469C '85':226C,323C,335C,341C 'aac':44C,978C 'abiola':671C,697C 'abus':370C 'accept':365C,707C 'accord':167C,517C 'account':39B,274C,924C,1036C,1263C,1271C,1479C 'accus':79C,1129C 'acknowledg':668C,694C 'action':42C,109C 'activ':1184C 'ad':247C,285C,603C,1032C 'address':193C,542C 'adjust':1323C,1385C 'admir':778C 'advanc':98C 'affect':971C,1209C 'african':41C 'age':14A,99C,215C,249C,278C,305C 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'year':113C,227C,1304C,1418C","type":"news","category":"general","source_name":null,"source_url":null,"is_breaking":false,"is_featured":true,"share_count":8,"client_id":null,"author_email":"popoolasulaimon46@gmail.com","engagement":{"like_count":45,"liked":false,"reactions":{"like":45,"love":0,"fire":0,"solidarity":0,"sad":0},"reaction_count":45,"viewer_reaction":null,"comment_count":21,"share_count":8}},{"id":"dbfa8e80-99ea-4394-a11c-f1894ded149f","user_id":"89cabeb3-4fd6-45c3-a0de-9457c1533943","title":"Sowore confronts DSS over discrimination, restrictions at Peace Accord venue","slug":"sowore-confronts-dss-over-discrimination-restrictions-at-peace-accord-venue","body":"\n\nThe Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has accused operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) of discriminatory treatment after he was stopped and subjected to restrictions at the venue of the National Peace Accord signing ceremony in Abuja.\n\nSowore made this known shortly after the event on Tuesday, saying he was blocked at the entrance of the venue by DSS personnel despite being one of the presidential candidates invited to the ceremony.\n\nIn the video he posted, one of the operatives demanded to see his invitation letter before allowing him access.\n\nSowore said the officer later admitted that he knew he was a presidential candidate, but he questioned why he was subjected to the unnecessary scrutiny.\n\n“As is typical of Nigeria’s security agencies, once you don’t arrive surrounded by a convoy of expensive automobiles and heavily armed escorts, they assume you are nobody,” Sowore said.\n\nHe stated that another presidential candidate arrived at the venue with a long convoy and was allowed to enter without facing similar treatment.\n\n“While this was going on, another presidential candidate swept in with his long convoy and was ushered through without any of this harassment,” he stated.\n\nSowore also stated that security personnel told him that his staff would not be allowed into the venue. He said his camera crew was subsequently subjected to the same restriction.\n\n“Then came another condition: I would not be allowed in with my staff. After that, they said my camera crew would not be allowed in either,” he said.\n\nThe AAC candidate said he refused to accept the restrictions, arguing that all presidential candidates attending the Peace Accord should be treated equally.\n\n“If this is supposed to be a ‘Peace Accord’ involving presidential candidates, then every candidate must be treated with equal dignity and respect,” Sowore said.\n\nHe maintained that candidates should not be treated differently because of the size of their convoys, the number of security personnel accompanying them or the level of privilege they display.\n\n“I insisted on my rights and made it clear that I would not succumb to discriminatory conduct,” he added.\n\nSowore also called for an end to intimidation, class discrimination and arbitrary treatment by Nigeria’s security agencies.\n\n“This culture of intimidation, class discrimination, and arbitrary treatment by Nigeria’s security agencies must end,” he said.\n\nThe incident occurred at the National Peace Accord signing ceremony organised by the National Peace Committee ahead of the 2027 general elections.\n\nThe committee, chaired by former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, had invited Sowore and AAC National Chairman Samuel Ajeigbe to sign the accord.\n\nThe committee said the initiative was aimed at encouraging issue-based campaigns, discouraging violence and inflammatory rhetoric, and promoting respect for opposing political views ahead of the 2027 elections. The ceremony was scheduled for August 18 at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja.\n\nSowore had also questioned the effectiveness of the Peace Accord during the event, calling for a stronger mechanism to ensure justice and accountability.\n\nHe argued that signing an accord without consequences for violations would not be enough to prevent electoral violence.\n\n“Maybe what the peace accord needs is also to have a justice accord,” Sowore said, according to The PUNCH, arguing that anyone who violated the terms of the agreement should face consequences.\n\nThe National Peace Committee was established ahead of the 2015 general elections as an initiative aimed at promoting peaceful and credible elections through agreements among political actors and mediation of politically driven conflicts.","excerpt":"“As is typical of Nigeria’s security agencies, once you don’t arrive surrounded by a convoy of expensive automobiles and heavily armed escorts, they assume you are 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