Human rights lawyer and a senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Femi Falana, has described the statement from the Department of State Services (DSS) that no one had come for his client, Mr. Omoyele Sowore, as misleading.
Sowore, who contested for president in the 2019 general election, is facing trial for alleged treasonable felony and fraud after he planned a nationwide anti-government protest with the hashtag #RevelutionNow.
The DSS had earlier confirmed that it had received the court order for the release of Omoyele Sowore and also said that since the receipt of the order, no person had turned up at the DSS to take delivery of him, hence their inability to release him.
However, his lawyer, Falana, in statement on Friday, said that on Wednesday when the bailiff of the federal high court wanted to serve the reproduction warrants issued by the court on the director-general of the DSS, the DSS asked the bailiff to call back at 10.00 am the next day (Thursday).
He further said, “The bailiff did and was able to serve the reproduction warrants on the DG of the SSS. Upon acknowledging the service of the reproduction warrants the DSS assured the bailiff and five lawyers from the defence team that our clients would be released yesterday.
But the sss decided not to release our clients to our lawyers who waited in vain in the agency’s headquarters for not less than four hours.”
Falana also noted that if the DSS had wanted to release Sowore and there was truly no one to receive, they would have called him (Falana).
“When Sowore said that he would not make a statement without first consulting with me the DSS management called me on phone on 6/8/19.
“Assuming the sss had wanted to release our clients since yesterday the management would have contacted me, “he stated.
While thanking Nigerians for demanding for unconditional compliance with the orders of the federal high court, Falana also said that they had directed two lawyers from our law firm to contact the management of the DSS Sowore’s release at 10.00 am on 9/11/19 (today).
He also appealed to Sowore to call off his hunger strike immediately.
