Attack on Sowore: Wike’s Spokesman Dares AAC Candidate to Call Tinubu a Criminal at Obalende, Oshodi, Ojota Parks

Ny Arit Mbeh

Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, Lere Olayinka, has challenged activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, to visit some motor parks in Lagos State and openly describe President Bola Tinubu as a criminal.

Olayinka issued the challenge while reacting to the reported attack on Sowore and members of his team in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital.

Sowore and some of his associates were reportedly attacked on Friday, October 30, 2026, at Tawakalitu Restaurant in the Dalimore area of Ado-Ekiti, shortly after the AAC presidential candidate concluded an interview with Midas FM 90.5.

Sowore alleged that armed men sponsored by the Ekiti State Government attacked him and his associates, accusing operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) of providing the attackers with information about their location.

In a series of posts on his X account, Sowore claimed that the DSS had been trailing and harassing him and his team since their arrival in the state. He further alleged that the attackers came from the Government House and received operational support from the secret police.

The activist also disputed the police account of the incident, insisting that it was a coordinated violent attack rather than an altercation.

However, the Ekiti State Police Command offered a different account, saying preliminary investigations indicated that Sowore and some individuals had an altercation at the restaurant, following which the police were alerted.

The police said their operatives rescued Sowore from the scene and took him to the Police Hospital in Ado-Ekiti for treatment of injuries described as minor.

The Commissioner of Police, Michael Falade Adegoroye, subsequently ordered an investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and identify those involved.

In a further development, the police arrested 11 suspects in connection with the incident. The suspects were reportedly apprehended by operatives of the Rapid Response Squad during a raid on their hideouts in the Atikankan area of Ado-Ekiti on Friday night.

The police said investigations were ongoing to establish the individual roles of the suspects and determine whether other persons were involved in the incident.

The AAC had earlier called on the Ekiti State Government and security agencies to ensure Sowore’s safety and bring those responsible to justice.

The incident also attracted reactions from political figures, including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who condemned the reported attack and called for an immediate and transparent investigation.

Reacting to the development in a post on his X account on Sunday, Olayinka mocked Sowore, suggesting that Nigerians and sections of the media would have celebrated the incident if the victim had been a prominent supporter of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He wrote:

“Imagine it was a prominent APC supporter that chopped MORO in Ekiti over the weekend.

“The story would have been; ‘ANGRY Nigerians attack APC Chieftain In Ekiti.’ They would have celebrated it.

“My own is, next, Sowore should try and go to Obalende, Ojota or Oshodi Motor Park in Lagos to go and call President Tinubu a criminal, I wan check something.”

Olayinka’s remarks have added another political dimension to the controversy surrounding the Ekiti incident, particularly amid competing accounts by Sowore and the police over the circumstances of the attack.