A leaked audio has revealed an alleged plot by suspected political thugs in Lagos State to assassinate human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore.
In the audio, a man identified as Timileyin Ishola Olafimihan, popularly known as “Is Nothing”, was heard boasting about a standing order to attack and kill Sowore whenever he is spotted in Lagos.
“If they catch Sowore, these people are not police, they are thugs. They are planning to kill him anywhere they see him,” the voice said.
Olafimihan allegedly warned supporters and activists not to accompany Sowore on his next trip to Lagos, insisting that “the boys have been mobilised and paid to do the job.”
The development reportedly followed Sowore’s active involvement in protests against the illegal demolition of houses in the Oworonshoki community in Lagos, which has displaced hundreds of residents.
When contacted, however, Olafimihan denied the assassination plot, claiming the viral audio was taken out of context.
“Don’t mind the audio. I was only joking, and the person I sent it to is like my neighbour. No thug is planning to assassinate Sowore,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Moshood Jimoh, on Monday, declared Sowore “wanted” after the activist led a protest at Oworonshoki against the ongoing demolitions.
Speaking at the demolition site, CP Jimoh accused Sowore of “instigating unrest” and attempting to mobilise residents to obstruct traffic on the Third Mainland Bridge.
“I hereby, as the Commissioner of Police, Lagos Police Command, declare Sowore wanted,” Jimoh said.
“I declare him wanted for the act of causing disturbance of public peace and an attempt to commit serious felony by planning and putting all the plans in motion to obstruct traffic on the Third Mainland Bridge to cause hardship for Lagosians and other Nigerians. We will not allow this to happen.”
But, human rights lawyers Deji Adeyanju and Marshal Abubakar, condemned the Commissioner’s declaration, describing it as a “dangerous abuse of power” and a “blatant disregard for due process.”
“The unilateral declaration of a citizen as ‘wanted’ by the Lagos State Commissioner of Police is therefore a dangerous disregard for due process and the rule of law. Such a police commissioner who does not understand this basic principle is not a fit and proper person to hold that office,” Adeyanju said in a statement.
He further noted that declaring Sowore wanted for organising a protest was an attack on citizens’ constitutional rights.
“Declaring Omoyele Sowore ‘wanted’ for organising a protest is not the defence of public order. It is a warning shot against the right to dissent,” he said.
“The Nigerian Constitution itself guarantees the right to freedom of assembly, association, and expression. These rights were not granted by the police or any arm of government, they are inherent to citizenship.”
Adeyanju added that only a competent court of law can declare a person wanted, stressing that the Commissioner acted outside the limits of his authority.
“Only a competent court of law can make such a declaration, and it must be based on credible evidence and justifiable legal grounds,” he said.
