Court Rejects DSS Request To Arrest Sowore, Adjourns “Defamation” Case To December 2
Court Rejects DSS Request To Arrest Sowore, Adjourns “Defamation” Case To December 2
The DSS had urged the court to order Sowore’s arrest following his absence at Wednesday’s proceedings, where he was expected to be arraigned on a five-count charge bordering on defamation and cybercrime.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has refused to issue a bench warrant for the arrest of activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, in a defamation case filed by the Department of State Services (DSS).
The DSS had urged the court to order Sowore’s arrest following his absence at Wednesday’s proceedings, where he was expected to be arraigned on a five-count charge bordering on defamation and cybercrime.
Sowore was charged for allegedly calling President Bola Tinubu a “criminal” in a post shared on his social media handles on August 25, 2025.
However, the post followed President Tinubu’s claim during an official visit to Brazil that his administration had ended corruption in Nigeria.
The prosecution, led by Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), said the post was aimed at inciting public disorder and tarnishing the reputation of the president.
The charges, signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, M.B. Abubakar, accused Sowore of violating Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024, and sections 59 and 375 of the Criminal Code Act.
Also named in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025 are X Corporation (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc. (Facebook), as second and third defendants, for hosting the allegedly defamatory post.
The DSS told the court it had written to both social media companies demanding that Sowore’s accounts be suspended and the post deleted.
However, both platforms and the activist reportedly ignored the request.
Justice Mohammed Umar declined the DSS’s application, ruling that it was premature to issue a bench warrant since X Corporation had yet to receive the full charge despite being served a hearing notice.
Justice Umar directed that all defendants be properly served with the necessary court documents and adjourned the case until December 2 for arraignment.
One of the counts in the charge before the court, read: “That you, Omoyele Sowore, adult, male, on or about the 25th day of August, 2025, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did use your official X Handle page, @Yele Sowore, to send out a message/ tweet as : “THIS CRIMINAL @ OFFICIAL PBAT ACTUALLY WENT TO BRAZIL TO STATE THAT THERE IS NO MORE CORRUPTION UNDER HIS REGIME IN NIGERIA. WHAT AUDACITY TO LIE SHAMELESSLY”, which you know the said message to be false but posted it for the purpose of causing a breakdown of law and order in the country, especially among individuals who hold divergent views on the personality of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR) and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24 (1) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024.”
