Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore has clashed with the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ajibola Basiru, over their past involvement in pro-democracy activism and how Basiru secured admission to the University of Lagos (UNILAG).
Sowore alleged that he helped Basiru gain admission to UNILAG after his expulsion from the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) during the student activism of 1992.
The activist made the claim while responding to Basiru’s description of him as a comedian and his criticism of Sowore’s chances of winning the 2027 presidential election.
Sowore said he received Basiru and another student, Kunle Adegoke, during the period and provided them with an opportunity to pursue their education at UNILAG.
According to him, Adegoke, who is now a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), also benefited from the arrangement.
Sowore maintained that the two men subsequently studied Law at UNILAG and completed their education.
Basiru, however, rejected the account, insisting that he gained admission to the institution on merit and did not depend on Sowore’s assistance.
The APC chieftain reportedly said he scored 310 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), claiming that his result was the highest among applicants to the university’s Faculty of Law in his admission year.
He also denied having any relationship with Sowore before securing admission.
The disagreement followed Basiru’s appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he questioned Sowore’s political standing and argued that the activist should first demonstrate his electoral strength by winning a seat in a state House of Assembly.
Sowore, who is the publisher of Sahara Reporters and a former presidential candidate, has remained a vocal critic of successive Nigerian administrations.
The exchange has brought renewed attention to the political differences between the two men and their conflicting accounts of events surrounding their university years.
