The Nigerian Immigration Service initially detained Omoyele Sowore, the convener of the #RevolutionNow Movement, at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Sunday immediately after his return to Nigeria.
This occurred on the same day that members of the Take It Back Movement and other activists gathered at the airport in anticipation of his arrival.
Sowore had been in the United States with his family. His flight departed from Washington Dulles International Airport at 6:14 AM EDT and landed in Lagos at approximately 9:43 AM WAT.
When contacted by Vanguard on the telephone, Sowore disclosed that he was detained by the Nigerian Immigration Service and that his passport was seized.
He stated that no reason was given for his detainment, and officials told him they were acting on instructions from higher authorities, needing to call Abuja for further direction on the matter
Court discharges Sowore, Bakare, orders DSS to release seized items
The Sahara Reporters publisher arrived Nigeria on Sunday morning, but the NIS took him into detention and released him later.
This move sparked an angry reaction from those present, some of whom where donning orange shirts and berets, the signature colours of Sowore’s #RevolutionNow campaign.
On Thursday, FIJ reported that the DSS had issued directives to its operatives to arrest and take Sowore to its headquarters upon his entry into the country.
It was not the first time the DSS would arrest and release a journalist.
In August, the secret police arrested Adejuwon Soyinka, a former BBC editor, and released him later, claiming it eas a case of mistaken identity.
Sowore later confirmed his release via his X handle, stating, “I have just been released by the Nigerian Immigration after a brief detention and my passport released back to me. #RevolutionNow.”
FIJ / Vanguard
