Outrage as Fake Death News Targets Omoyele Sowore’s Family After Adekunle Gold Free Speech Clash
By Passman Akpos
A wave of outrage has followed the circulation of a false social media report claiming that human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, had lost two of his children in a fatal car accident in New Jersey, United States.
The viral post, which described the incident as a “breaking news” tragedy and urged people to type “RIP,” quickly spread across several social media platforms, triggering strong reactions from supporters and political observers who condemned it as malicious propaganda.
Many of Sowore’s supporters dismissed the report as fake news deliberately fabricated to distract from the recent controversy surrounding his criticism of singer Adekunle Gold over alleged arrests of online critics.
Several reactions online described the false report as an evil attempt to emotionally target Sowore for speaking against oppression and defending free speech.
One supporter wrote that only “miscreants who do not want a better Nigeria” would spread such dangerous lies against a man fighting for citizens’ freedom, insisting that no evil would befall Sowore or his family.
Another commenter said the people behind the fabricated story were only exposing their own wickedness, adding that Sowore remains focused on the struggle for a better Nigeria and would not be shaken by such falsehood.
Others invoked prayers and curses against those responsible for creating and spreading the rumour, declaring that such tragedy would never happen to Sowore’s family
The backlash intensified because the false report surfaced shortly after Sowore publicly blasted Adekunle Gold over what he described as attempts to use police power and Nigeria’s cybercrime laws against ordinary citizens over social media criticism.
Sowore had referenced old 2012 posts where Adekunle Gold criticized former President Goodluck Jonathan, arguing that such expressions were defended then as free speech and should not now be criminalized because of celebrity influence.
“You cannot enjoy free speech when you are powerless and criminalize it the moment you become influential,” Sowore had stated.
He also accused the Nigeria Police Force of acting as a “private army for the rich and famous,” while calling on the judiciary to stop imposing harsh punishments over online speech.
The fake death report has now added another layer to the growing online debate, with many Nigerians warning against the dangerous use of misinformation as a political weapon.
As of the time of filing this report, there has been no official statement confirming any such tragedy, and supporters insist the story is entirely false and should be ignored.
