A Federal High Court in Abuja has barred politician and convener of #RevolutionNow protest, Omoyele Sowore, and his co-defendant, Olawale Adebayo Bakare (aka Mandate), not to participate in any form of protest pending the conclusion of their trial.
Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu announced this yesterday as part of the conditions attached to the bail granted Sowore (who also owns the online medium – Sahara Reporters) and Bakare, while ruling on their bail application.
The judge granted them bail, but with varied conditions. While Sowore got bail at N100million and two sureties in the same amount, Bakare was granted bail at N50m with a surety in the same amount.
The three sureties, the judge said, must be resident in Abuja and must have landed property in Abuja, with value estimated at the amount set for bail. The judge said the sureties must deposit the original title documents of the property with the court.
They sureties, the judge added, are to show evidence of tax payment for three years – 2014 to 2016.
Justice Ojukwu, who equally ordered the defendants to submit their international passports to the court, said they must not travel outside the country without the court’s permission.
The defendants were arraigned before the court on September 30, 2019 on a seven-count charge in which they were, among others, accused of plotting to remove the president and destabilize the country, a charge to which they denied by pleading not guilty.
After they pleaded to the charge, Justice Ojukwu ordered them to file formal bail applications, directed that they be kept in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) and fixed October 4, 2019 for the hearing of the bail applications.
