DSS Move to Deactivate Sowore Verified X Account 

The Department of State Services has petitioned X Corporation, demanding the deactivation of the verified account of activist Omoyele Sowore over what it describes as a disparaging post against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The agency says the tweet is dangerous, misleading, and capable of inciting violence, threatening national security, and discrediting Nigeria before the international community.

In the petition dated September 6, 2025, and addressed to the Chairman and CEO of X Corp. in Texas, USA, the DSS accused Sowore of spreading false and offensive content through his August 25 post. 

The activist, in a late-night tweet referencing Tinubu’s official handle, wrote: “This criminal @officialABAT actually went to Brazil to state that there is NO MORE corruption under his regime in Nigeria. What audacity to lie shamelessly!”

The DSS says those words were directly targeted at the President, describing them as false, misleading, indecent, and a violation of privacy. 

It warned that the tweet has already attracted condemnation, street protests by Tinubu’s supporters, and risks escalating political tension across the country.

The petition, signed by B. Bamigboye on behalf of the Director-General of the DSS, insists the statement contravenes several Nigerian laws: Section 51 of the Criminal Code Act, which prohibits false publication.

Sections 19, 22, and 24 of the Cybercrimes Act 2025, which outlaw fake news, offensive and indecent online content, and cyber harassment.

Section 2(3) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, which criminalises statements likely to provoke ethnic or political unrest.

The security agency further accused Sowore of willfully promoting hate speech, online harassment, and an ideology capable of causing disunity, domestic terrorism, and reputational damage to both the President and Nigeria before the “comity of nations.”

Citing X’s own transparency and safety policies, the DSS called for the immediate takedown of the tweet and all its retweets, as well as the deactivation of Sowore’s handle @YeleSowore, giving the company a 24-hour ultimatum to comply.

The agency warned that failure to act would leave the Federal Government no option but to implement, in its words, “far-reaching, sweeping and across-the-board measures” through the DSS against such criminal acts.

Meanwhile, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress in the 2023 elections, Omoyele Sowore has vowed not to comply with a demand from the Department of State Services (DSS) to delete a tweet critical of President Bola Tinubu.

In a post on his X handle, Sowore confirmed that the platform had contacted him about what he described as the “despicable threat letter” from the DSS. He explicitly stated, “One option I will NOT be taking is deleting that Tweet. Thank you, @X.”

The message from X, which Sowore also shared, confirmed that the platform had received a request from the DSS alleging that his content violated Nigerian law.

However, X stated that it had “not taken any action on the reported content at this time.”

The platform’s message, which aligns with its transparency policy, informed Sowore of the request and advised him to seek legal counsel or consider other options.

““As X strongly believes in defending and respecting the voice of our users, it is our policy to notify our users if we receive a legal request from an authorised entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account. We provide notice whether or not the user lives in the country where the request originated.”

“We understand that receiving this type of notice can be an unsettling experience. While X is not able to provide legal advice, we want you to have an opportunity to evaluate the request and, if you wish, take appropriate action to protect your interests.”