A new smear campaign targeting Sahara Reporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore, has emerged as a group of Abuja-based lawyers petitioned the United States Attorney General, calling for investigations into his financial activities and U.S. travel documents. But investigations by independent observers reveal that the move is politically motivated, a coordinated attempt by corrupt politicians to silence one of Nigeria’s most fearless anti-corruption voices.
The petition, dated October 7, 2025, and submitted through Heartland Advisors & Solicitors, was reportedly financed by political figures recently exposed in several investigations by Sahara Reporters. Sources close to the matter describe it as “a desperate backlash from the same powerful network Sowore has consistently held accountable.”
Political retaliation disguised as a legal petition.
While the lawyers claimed their petition sought “financial transparency,” analysts argue the move mirrors a familiar pattern, using legal institutions to harass whistleblowers and journalists who challenge entrenched corruption. For nearly two decades, Sowore and Sahara Reporters have exposed large-scale looting, election rigging, and human rights abuses across Nigeria’s political landscape.
“This isn’t about transparency. It is about revenge,” said a senior civil rights advocate in Abuja. “Whenever Sowore publishes evidence of graft, the political class scrambles to attack him through proxies. It’s corruption fighting back.”
A track record of transparency.
Contrary to the claims made in the petition, Sahara Media Group operates in full compliance with all applicable laws in the United States and has consistently disclosed its nonprofit partnerships, including grants from international media development organizations. No financial impropriety has ever been proven against the organization or its founder.
Observers also note that the MacArthur Foundation grant referenced in the petition is public knowledge, duly listed in the foundation’s U.S. grant database. “It’s ridiculous that publicly listed funding, used to train Nigerian journalists, is being twisted into a corruption allegation,” said a journalist familiar with the program.
Weaponizing the legal system against reformers.
This latest campaign against Sowore reflects a troubling trend in Nigeria. The weaponization of the legal system to suppress dissent and manipulate public perception. By recruiting lawyers to front politically motivated petitions, corrupt elites attempt to launder propaganda through official channels.
Analysts warn that if unchecked, such tactics could further erode civic trust and embolden corrupt leaders who fear accountability. “The people targeting Sowore are the same people who have benefitted from decades of impunity,” one observer said. “They are terrified of the new generation of Nigerians demanding transparency.”
- Public support mounts for Sowore
Despite the smear campaign, public sentiment continues to rally behind Sowore. On social media, thousands of Nigerians have condemned the petition, describing it as “cowardly” and “an insult to journalism and justice.”
Sowore himself has not issued a formal response but has long maintained that his activism is rooted in truth-telling and public accountability. “Nigeria cannot change until corruption feels the pain of exposure,” he once said.
For many Nigerians, this episode underscores a larger reality: when corruption fights back, it only proves that truth is winning.
— By NexTruth News Desk
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