*Fails to open defence
Online publisher and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) Omoyele Sowore, on Friday told a Federal High Court in Abuja that he has been deserted by his lawyers in the defamation charges brought against him by the Department of the State Service (DSS).
He however blamed his ordeal on the ruling of the Court delivered on June 4 which ordered him to open his defence in the charges against him or foreclose the defence.
At Friday’s proceedings, Sowore who is also a lawyer by training argued his own case in an oral application where he asked Justice Mohammed Garba Umar to recuse himself from the trial.
He alleged that Justice Umar had demonstrated bias against him and that he may not get justice in the trial.
DSS counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, did not oppose the oral application by Sowore for recusal but kicked against a long adjournment for ruling in the application.
Justice Umar initially fixed Monday, June 8 for ruling in the recusal application, the Court bent backward due to a plea by Sowore and shifted the matter to June 15 for ruling and for him to open his defence.
Justice Umar, in a ruling on Thursday, had rejected a request by Sowore’s lawyer, Marshall Abubakar, that further trial in the charge be adjourned till after the court’s forthcoming vacation in July..
The judge had also ordered that further hearing in the case be conducted daily, beginning from June 5 when the defendant shall be obligated to open his defence.
Sowore is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) for allegedly making false claims against President Bola Tinubu by calling him “a criminal” in posts he made on his “X” and Facebook accounts.
