The alleged treason case against Omoyele Sowore, a former Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, faced a setback on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja due to the absence of the judge assigned to the case.
Sowore, who is standing trial before Justice Emeka Nwite on charges of treasonable felony, appeared in court on Tuesday, but the proceedings were disrupted due to the unavailability of the judge.
Sowore’s counsel, Mr. Marshall Abubakar, explained the situation, stating, “The court registrar had informed me that the judge was on national assignment in another jurisdiction of the court.”
As a result, a new hearing date has been scheduled for February 14, 2024.
The charges against Sowore stem from his call for a protest known as #RevolutionNow on August 5, 2019, leading to accusations of treason by the federal government.
On the last adjourned date on November 15, Nwite had threatened to strike out the case if the government failed to serve the charge on the second defendant, Olawale Bakare.
Sowore’s counsel, Abubakar, had expressed frustration, alleging that the prosecution team was attempting to hinder his client by not serving the second defendant with the hearing notice.
Despite writing to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, seeking the severance of the charges, Abubakar informed the court that they were awaiting the minister’s response.
Nwite emphasized the need for compliance with the court’s order to serve the second defendant, warning that failure to do so could result in the case being struck out.
NAN
