Omoyele Sowore, the 2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, was arrested upon his arrival in Nigeria on Sunday morning.
Sowore landed at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, after a flight from Washington Dulles International Airport that departed at 6:14 AM EDT and touched down at around 9:43 AM.
The arrest follows a leaked memo from the Department of State Services (DSS) dated September 12, 2024, which instructed his detention upon arrival.
Confirming the incident via his official X handle, Sowore stated that his passport was seized by immigration officials, who informed him of orders to detain him.
“I had just arrived in Nigeria from the USA at MMIA in Lagos; upon reaching Nigerian Immigration, my passport was seized, and they told me they had orders to detain me,” Sowore wrote. He further described the arrest as part of what he called “a broader clampdown” by the current government, adding that the regime feared the planned #FearlessInOctober protests.
Sowore urged citizens to resist tyranny through direct actions planned for October 1, emphasizing, “In case this becomes another prolonged and protracted detention, I urge our citizens to ensure they ALL stop tyranny by all means acceptable and necessary.”
As of now, the DSS has not provided any public statements on the reason for the arrest or further details about the case.
