Omoyele Sowore, the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, has stated that he would not accept President Bola Tinubu as his bail surety, even if he volunteered.
Sowore is currently in police custody after being invited for questioning over allegations of cyberstalking, negligence, and intimidation.
The investigation relates to a viral video in which he confronted officers who had stopped his vehicle at a checkpoint in Lagos.
He arrived at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Monday and was arraigned on Wednesday over cybercrime allegations.
However, he rejected the bail conditions set by the police, which required him to surrender his international passport and present a level 17 civil servant as a surety.
Speaking to journalists at the court, Sowore called the conditions “laughable, frivolous, and ridiculous,” insisting that the police have no authority to demand such requirements.
He argued that expecting a civil servant to own a ₦100 million house to stand as surety was itself an act of corruption.
Sowore, a human rights activist and publisher, said he had spent his life fighting against corruption and would not accept what he described as an insult.
He also criticised the demand for a level 17 civil servant as surety, pointing out that such a rank is reserved for politically appointed permanent secretaries.
Sowore maintained that he would continue to resist police impunity, adding that his status as an employer and activist made the bail demands unreasonable.
The court adjourned its ruling on his bail application to Thursday, January 25.
