By Mahmoud
Omoyele Sowore, the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate and human rights activist, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under Ola Olukoyede of being a “wicked organization.”
He said this after attending two court sessions at the Federal High Court in Abuja before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik. The EFCC presented two people for arraignment in court.
Among those arraigned is Maryam Isa Shehu, a final-year student at Bayero University Kano, BUK. She is accused of “cyberbullying the commission on social media.”
Sowore said the two of them had been detained for about 30 days before being taken to court. Instead of granting them bail, the court ordered that they remain in custody until August 31.
Maryam was sent to Suleja Correctional Centre, while the other suspect was sent to Kuje Correctional Centre. What upsets Sowore the most is that Maryam is supposed to start her final exams at the university this Saturday.
In the charge sheet with number FHC/ABJ/CR/514/2026 dated August 20, 2026, Maryam is accused of posting on her Instagram account @maryam_shehu on June 21, 2026. She alleged that EFCC officials abused Ahmed Uthman on the orders of a Zonal Director who is accused of collecting ₦20,000,000 from Usman Iya Abbas.
The EFCC based the charge on Section 24(2)(c) of the Cybercrimes Act 2024. Sowore questioned why an agency set up to fight corruption would focus on arraigning people for criticizing or accusing it of cyberbullying.
According to him, it is wrong to detain a university student for a month and then prevent her from sitting for her exams over an online allegation. He said the EFCC should be fighting corruption, not turning itself into an agency that hunts, detains, and prosecutes citizens.
Note: These are only allegations presented by the EFCC. The court has not delivered a final judgment yet.
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