Justice Mohammed Garuba Umar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has rejected a bid by online publisher and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, to tender uncertified documents in his trial for allegedly defaming President Bola Tinubu.
The judge, on Wednesday, declined the application after Sowore’s lead counsel, Olumide Fusika (SAN), sought to tender the documents through another lawyer, Barrister Wayne Chikezie Elijah.
The documents included a summary of proceedings relating to the testimony of a witness codenamed “XYZ”, as well as other letters.
During the proceedings, Fusika called Elijah as the third defence witness solely for the purpose of tendering the documents. The issue arose after the court registrar directed all prospective defence witnesses to leave the courtroom and remain out of hearing until called to testify. However, Elijah remained in the courtroom despite the directive.
When called into the witness box, counsel to the Department of State Services (DSS), Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), asked Elijah to confirm whether he had been present while the first defence witness of the day, Uwen Davis, was giving evidence. Responding, Elijah admitted that he had been both inside and outside the courtroom during the testimony.
The DSS objected to the admissibility of the documents, arguing that they were public documents and, under the Evidence Act, ought to be certified before they could be admitted in evidence.
Kehinde urged the court to reject the documents and mark them accordingly. Fusika, however, argued that the documents formed part of court records and therefore did not require certification.
In his ruling, Justice Umar held that the documents had been in the custody of a lawyer who claimed to have previously handled the matter. “The reason for certification is to be sure the document has not been tampered with. Having been in the custody of the said counsel, how is the court sure that the document has not been tampered with?” the judge asked.
He subsequently rejected the documents and ordered that they be marked as rejected. “The document is rejected and marked as such,” Justice Umar ruled.
Earlier, Uwen Davis, a Principal Officer in the General Services Department of the DSS, testified that he authored a letter dated September 7, 2025, addressed to the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of X Corporation, requesting the removal of a post in which Sowore allegedly referred to President Tinubu as a criminal.
He said the letter stated that Tinubu’s supporters were becoming agitated and that the post could lead to a breakdown of law and order. Under cross-examination, Davis admitted that he could not specifically identify the supporters he referred to in the letter, adding that he wrote it on the instruction of a superior officer.
Justice Umar adjourned further hearing in the defence to July 28. At the previous sitting on July 16, the judge issued a final warning, directing Sowore to open his defence in the case or risk being barred from doing so.