The Department of State Services (DSS) has directed its counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, to seek an adjournment of the alleged cybercrime case against African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore until after the 2027 presidential election.
The move is reportedly aimed at allowing Sowore to participate fully in the electioneering process without ongoing court proceedings interfering with his political activities.
The DSS instituted the case over social media posts in which Sowore described President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal”. The posts were published on his X account and Facebook page on August 25, 2025.
Following the posts, the DSS gave Sowore seven days to remove them. After the deadline expired without the posts being taken down, the agency approached the Federal High Court on September 16, 2025, seeking a judicial determination on whether it was lawful to publicly describe the President or another person as a “criminal”.
X and Meta, which owns Facebook, were initially listed as defendants but were later removed from the case by the Federal High Court in Abuja, leaving Sowore as the sole defendant.
Sowore pleaded not guilty to the amended charges filed against him under the Cybercrimes Act 2024 and has repeatedly described the prosecution as politically motivated and an attempt to restrict his freedom of expression.
He also filed fundamental rights suits against the DSS and the technology companies, challenging what he described as efforts to censor him.
However, a source familiar with the DSS legal team said the agency’s Director-General, Tosin Ajayi, met with the senior lawyer and senior officers of the legal directorate on August 20 to discuss suspending the case.
According to the source, the meeting followed the decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to lift the restriction on campaigns for the 2027 presidential election.
“With the commencement of presidential campaigns, it would only be fair to pause the court case in order to enable Sowore to fully participate in the upcoming elections without let or hindrance.”
The source said Ajayi also noted that the case had already been before the court for almost a year and that delaying proceedings for another four months would not make a significant difference.
The DSS has reportedly directed its legal team to examine similar cases involving candidates contesting other elective positions.
The agency had previously maintained that the Sowore case was primarily intended to obtain a judicial interpretation of whether describing President Tinubu or another person as a “criminal” was lawful, rather than being an attempt to prevent Sowore from participating in political activities.
In a September 6, 2025 letter to Meta’s chairman, the DSS argued that its responsibility to protect the President extended beyond physical threats to include psychological attacks.
The source said the decision to seek an adjournment is expected to be formally communicated to the Federal High Court from September 14, 2026, when the court is scheduled to resume regular sittings after its annual judicial vacation.
Sowore, who has previously been granted bail by the Federal High Court on self-recognition, is expected to continue his political activities as he campaigns for the 2027 presidential election.
