Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed June 15, 2026, for ruling on an application filed by Omoyele Sowore seeking his recusal from the ongoing trial.
At Friday’s proceedings, Sowore informed the court that he would represent himself pending the engagement of new counsel or the reconstitution of his legal team.
According to Sowore, his lawyers are reluctant to appear before the court because of what they described as the humiliation they allegedly suffered during previous proceedings.
He subsequently moved two applications already served on the prosecution. The first sought an order directing Justice Umar to recuse himself from the case on grounds of alleged bias, while the second requested that the matter be referred to the Chief Judge for reassignment to another judge.
Counsel to the prosecution, Kehinde Akinlolu, opposed the applications, describing them as an abuse of court process intended to irritate the court.
Akinlolu argued that the court was bound by its records, noting that a letter from the Chief Judge had directed that the case should proceed before the current court.
He urged the judge to dismiss the applications in their entirety and disregard what he termed the “tantrums” being advanced by the defendant and his legal team.
In a brief ruling, Justice Umar said he would review the applications and accompanying processes before delivering a decision. The matter was subsequently adjourned until June 15, 2026, for ruling.
Sowore is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) over allegations that he made defamatory and false claims against President Bola Tinubu, including describing him as “a criminal” in posts published on his X and Facebook accounts.
