Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Amnesty International Nigeria have called on President Bola Tinubu to order the immediate withdrawal of criminal charges filed against activist Omoyele Sowore, as well as against social media platforms X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
The appeal was contained in a joint letter dated 20 September 2025, signed by SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare, and Amnesty International Nigeria director, Isa Sanusi. The groups urged Tinubu to stop the Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agencies from “misusing judicial processes to silence dissent.”
They also pressed the President to direct the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to introduce an anti-SLAPP law before the National Assembly. Such legislation, they argued, would prevent lawsuits aimed at stifling public criticism and free expression.
“The weaponisation of the justice system to crack down on peaceful dissent is entirely inconsistent with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) and the country’s international human rights obligations,” the letter read.
The DSS had, on 16 September 2025, filed a five-count charge at the Federal High Court in Abuja against Sowore, X Corp and Meta Incorporation. Two of the counts were laid under the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act 2024, while three others – criminal defamation, causing public fear, and disturbance – were brought under the Criminal Code Act.
The charges reportedly stemmed from Sowore’s alleged refusal to delete posts critical of President Tinubu.
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Sowore confirmed the development in a Facebook post, stating: “The State Security Service, alias @OfficialDSSNG, today filed a 5-count charge at the Federal High Court in Abuja against X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and myself. They claimed that because I called Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu a criminal, I have somehow committed a set of ‘novel’ offences they invented and spread across five counts.”
The rights groups warned that “SLAPP and criminal defamation lawsuits are neither necessary nor proportionate” and create a chilling effect on free speech.
They reminded Tinubu of his Democracy Day speech in June, where he said: “We dare not seek silence because the imposed silence of repressed voices breeds chaos and ill will… Call me names, call me whatever you will, and I will still call upon democracy to defend your right to do so.”
They also cited a 2022 ECOWAS Court ruling that ordered Nigeria to stop using Section 24 of the Cybercrime Act to prosecute citizens for “insulting public officials online,” describing the provision as vague and repressive.
The organisations accused the DSS of repeatedly turning to SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) actions to intimidate critics.
They recalled that in May 2025, the DSS filed a similar case against Professor Pat Utomi, accusing him of attempting to usurp Tinubu’s powers through a shadow government. Another suit was also lodged against SERAP in October 2024 over alleged unauthorised office invasion.
“These cases illustrate the growing use of SLAPP lawsuits by the DSS and other security and law enforcement agencies in Nigeria to target, harass and intimidate Nigerians for the peaceful exercise of their human rights,” the groups said.
SERAP and Amnesty International gave Tinubu seven days to act, warning that failure to withdraw the charges would compel them to pursue “all appropriate legal actions, including before the ECOWAS Court of Justice.”
