Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, on Wednesday confronted Nigeria’s Minister of Works, David Umahi, inside the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command of the Nigeria Police Force, Abuja, over unlawful arrest and detention of a woman allegedly owed N250million by the minister.
Sowore disclosed this in a video posted on his social media handles, accusing Umahi of using the police to settle personal scores in what he termed an abuse of power and intimidation of a private citizen.
According to Sowore, the confrontation occurred inside a conference room at the FCT Police Command, where he alleged that police operatives had created an enabling environment for the minister to harass the detained woman.
“Today at the FCT Command of the Nigeria Police Force in Abuja, I confronted the Minister of Works, David Umahi inside a conference room where police operatives had effectively set up shop for him to harass a woman who a used him of owing her and making a pass at her years ago,” Sowore said.
He identified the woman as Tracy Nither Nicolas Ohiri, describing her as a married woman who was allegedly arrested in Lagos on claims of cyberbullying and subsequently transported to Abuja.
“A married woman, TracyNither Nicolas Ohiri had been illegally arrested in Lagos on allegations of “cyberbullying,” flown to Abuja, and detained,” he stated.
Sowore maintained that Ohiri’s alleged offence stemmed from her accusation that Umahi owed her N250 million for over 12 years — a matter he insisted was purely civil in nature.
“Her alleged offence was accusing David Umahi of owing her N250 million for over 12 years, a claim that, at its core, is a civil dispute,” he said.
“Rather than treat the matter as such, the police escalated it into a criminal spectacle.”
He further alleged that after detaining Ohiri, police authorities facilitated a meeting that allowed Umahi to confront her within the police facility.
“After unlawfully detaining her, the police facilitated a meeting in which Umahi was brought into the command to threaten, intimidate, and denigrate her inside a police facility until we arrived and they immediately dismantled the “interview” and Umahi left, angry,” Sowore said.
According to him, despite Umahi’s departure from the premises, police authorities refused to grant the woman bail or release her from custody.
“After Umahi left, they refused to grant her bail or release her, we later learnt Umahi promised that she’s not seen anything on his way out of the FCT Police Command,” Sowore added.
The activist insisted that the minister, as a public office holder, had no justification for allegedly deploying law enforcement agencies to pursue what he described as a private grievance.
He said Umahi doesn’t have to be using the Nigerian police to arrest anyone for settling scores, stressing that civil disputes must not be criminalised or weaponised through state institutions.
