The Federal Government (FG), on Tuesday, filed a five-count charge against activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, for allegedly calling President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a “criminal” in posts shared on social media.
The suit, filed before the Federal High Court, Abuja, through the Director of Public Prosecutions, Federal Ministry of Justice, M. B. Abubakar, also joined Meta Platforms Inc. (Facebook) and X Inc. (formerly Twitter) as second and third defendants.
According to the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/484/2025, Sowore, on August 25, 2025, used his official X handle, @YeleSowore, to publish what the prosecution described as a defamatory and false statement. The post read:
“THIS CRIMINAL @OFFICIALPBAT ACTUALLY WENT TO BRAZIL TO STATE THAT THERE IS NO MORE CORRUPTION UNDER HIS REGIME IN NIGERIA. WHAT AUDACITY TO LIE SHAMELESSLY.”
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The government maintained that the statement amounted to cyberstalking and defamation, contrary to Section 24 (1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024, and punishable under the Criminal Code Act, Sections 59 and 375.
In addition, prosecutors said Sowore repeated the alleged defamatory statement on his Facebook page the following day, August 26.
The Department of State Services (DSS), angered by the post, had written to both social media companies demanding that Sowore’s account be suspended and the statement deleted. A letter was also served on the activist himself.
According to the prosecution, neither Sowore nor the platforms complied. This, they argued, necessitated the charges.
One of the counts in the charge read in part:
“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, @YeleSowore, to send out a message… which you know 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).”
The Federal Government insisted that the post was deliberately aimed at tarnishing the image of the President. It listed as evidence printouts of Sowore’s posts, as well as copies of the letters exchanged between the DSS and the two tech companies.
As at press time, no date had been fixed for the arraignment of the defendants.
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