Human rights activist and SaharaReporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore, is scheduled to appear at the Federal High Court in Abuja today as his trial resumes on a five-count criminal charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS). The suit also lists X Corp., owners of X (formerly Twitter), and Meta Platforms Inc., parent company of Facebook, as co-defendants. The charges stem from Sowore’s posts on both platforms in which he referred to President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal.”

Filed on September 16, 2025, by M.B. Abubakar, Director of Public Prosecutions at the Federal Ministry of Justice, the charges accuse Sowore of cyberstalking, defamation, and knowingly publishing false information. The DSS cites posts made on August 25 and 26, 2025, where Sowore criticised Tinubu’s remarks during his official visit to Brazil, in which the President claimed his administration had eliminated corruption. Prosecutors argue that the posts constitute a criminal misuse of online platforms.

As the court prepares to continue proceedings, the involvement of major tech companies and the high-profile nature of the accusations have drawn intense public attention. Will this case reshape the boundaries of online political expression and liability for digital platforms in Nigeria? Visit www.jocomms.com for more news