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Omoyele Sowore, a prominent human rights advocate and erstwhile presidential contender, has taken issue with singer Adekunle Gold following allegations that a social media user was jailed for making false statements about the artist and his family.
In a widely circulated interview, Sowore expressed disapproval over Adekunle Gold and his wife, fellow musician Simi, opting for legal measures that led to a young man’s imprisonment for over two years due to comments made on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
“That’s not how to handle false stories”
He emphasized that public figures should adopt a more lenient approach to addressing false rumors, suggesting that resorting to law enforcement to silence critics or online commentators is unwarranted.
“How dare Adekunle Gold, after acquiring some wealth and fame, imprison someone for two years over statements everyone knows aren’t true? Just yesterday, I received calls claiming my wife and children had died in the U.S. I simply contacted them to verify their well-being and moved on,” Sowore remarked.
He further drew parallels to past occurrences involving notable individuals, citing instances like the false death reports about members of former US President Donald Trump’s family and a religious leader in Kaduna who was erroneously declared deceased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Nigerians love oppression too much”
According to Sowore, the situation reflects a growing culture of oppression among influential Nigerians.
“How can you sit down with police and prosecutors to jail someone for two and a half years because of three lines on Twitter? Nigerians complain about oppression until they get small power, then they become worse,” he added.
The controversy comes amid increasing debates in Nigeria over cybercrime laws, online speech, and the arrest of social media users for controversial posts.
Watch the video below….
“How dare Adekunle Gold go and send somebody to jail for two years for writing something we all know that it’s not true. Someone posted my wife and children have d!3d and I didn’t even reply to it.”
— Omoyele Sowore. pic.twitter.com/ZEbuwFctZt
— 𝐀𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐲𝐆𝐑𝐍 (@AsakyGRN) May 19, 2026