Sowore’s trial: Court admits Omokri clip calling Tinubu drug lord

The trial of former presidential candidate and activist, Omoyele Sowore, took a dramatic turn on Tuesday as the Federal High Court in Abuja admitted video evidence in which former presidential aide and ambassador-designate, Reno Omokri, publicly described President Bola Tinubu as a “drug lord.”

The development occurred during cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, Mr Cyril Nosike, a Department of State Services operative, by Sowore’s counsel, Mr Marshal Abubakar.

Abubakar tendered a flash drive containing video clips of Omokri, which were played in open court.

One of the clips showed Omokri speaking during a 2023 interview on ARISE News, where he claimed to possess documentary evidence allegedly linking President Tinubu to drug-related offences.

“Drug lord is not an unprintable name. Bola Tinubu is a known drug lord. I’ve got documents to back it up. I spent my money, went to Chicago, went to court, and got certified true copies. Bola Tinubu is a drug lord,” Omokri was heard saying in the broadcast.

Another clip admitted in evidence showed Omokri declaring that he would never work with President Tinubu.

Following the playback of the videos, Sowore’s counsel questioned the DSS witness on why Omokri was later cleared by the agency for an ambassadorial appointment despite making such grave public allegations against the President.

In response, Nosike told the court that he had no answer to the question.

Although the prosecution counsel, Mr Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), objected to the admissibility of the video evidence, the trial judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, overruled the objection and admitted the flash drive and its contents in evidence.

Sowore is standing trial on amended two counts, bordering on cybercrime for describing President Tinubu as a “criminal” in a social media post made on August 25, 2025.

The charge followed comments made by Sowore after President Tinubu, during an official visit to Brazil, declared that his administration had ended corruption in Nigeria.

According to the prosecution, the DSS wrote to X (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc., demanding that Sowore’s accounts be banned and the offending post deleted. The agency also wrote directly to Sowore, asking him to take down the publication.

The prosecution alleged that the charges were filed after Sowore and the social media platforms refused to comply with the requests.

It further claimed that the post was intended to cause a breakdown of law and order and to damage the image and reputation of the President.

Among other exhibits tendered by the prosecution were printouts of Sowore’s posts on X and Facebook, as well as copies of the DSS letters to the social media companies.

Meta and X were initially joined as defendants in the criminal charges but following an amendment, the Federal Government removed them from the case.

During cross-examination on Tuesday, Abubakar also asked the DSS witness whether the agency interviewed President Tinubu or obtained any statement from him regarding the alleged impact of Sowore’s post.

Nosike said the DSS did not obtain a statement from the President and could not confirm whether Tinubu was personally aware of the publication.

Justice Umar adjourned the matter until February 4 for continuation of the trial.(Punch)