Omoyele Sowore, who is the publisher of the Sahara Reporters news portal, is to be held in detention by the Department of State Services; for a period of 45 days. DSS had asked the court for a 90 day detention.
Reports indicate that he is set to be charged with terrorism, a charge that a leading legal expert in Nigeria, Femi Falana, has insisted will fall flat when trial opens.
Local media reported that his arrest was linked to plans to mobilise people in Lagos and other parts of the country for a revolution protest tagged ‘Days of Rage’ to demand a better Nigeria.
The arrest elicited a wide range of condemnation on social media with people accusing the government of seeking to stifle dissent and the right to peaceful protest.