Sowore’s Post on Tinubu Generated Tension, Threatened Public Safety, DSS Tells Court in Cyber Defamation Case

Trial commenced on Thursday in the criminal defamation and cybercrime case against politician and online publisher, Omoyele Sowore, with the prosecution calling its first witness before the Federal High Court.
Sowore is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) over an alleged false and inciting post in which he referred to President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal” on his X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook accounts, an action the prosecution said generated public tension and posed a threat to public safety.
The first prosecution witness, Mr Cyril Nosike, an official of the DSS attached to its Cyber Space Monitoring Centre, told the court that his duties include round-the-clock monitoring of online activities that could affect national security.
Led in evidence by prosecuting counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), Nosike said that on August 26, 2025, he detected a post by Sowore on X in which the defendant described President Tinubu as “this criminal @OfficialABAT,” referring to the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
According to the witness, the post was made under a video showing President Tinubu speaking in Brazil, where he reportedly told investors that there was no more corruption in Nigeria and urged them to invest in the country.
Nosike said he downloaded the video and saved it on a flash drive, which he marked as an exhibit. He identified the flash drive and a certificate of compliance in court, after which the prosecution applied to tender them in evidence.
Defence counsel, Marshall Abubakar, said he would reserve his objection until a later stage, and Justice Mohammed Umar admitted the exhibits in evidence.
At the request of the prosecution, the court allowed the video to be played in open court. The video showed President Tinubu highlighting his administration’s achievements and assuring Brazilian investors of a conducive business environment in Nigeria.
Shortly after the video was played, Kehinde drew the court’s attention to the fact that Sowore was using his mobile phone while proceedings were ongoing. Although the defendant attempted to deny the allegation, Justice Umar frowned at the conduct, describing it as inappropriate.
The judge ordered that the phone be retrieved and handed over to Sowore’s lawyer. However, Sowore initially refused to release the phone to a court official, telling her, “Don’t touch my phone.” He later sought and obtained the court’s permission to personally hand the phone to his lawyer, which he did before returning to the dock. The court then directed that the phone be placed on the table in front of the court.
Resuming his testimony, Nosike said he took screenshots of public reactions to Sowore’s post and that the DSS subsequently wrote official letters to X and Meta (Facebook), requesting the takedown of the post due to the tension it was generating.
He added that the DSS also wrote to Sowore through his lawyers, demanding a retraction of the post. According to him, although the letter was confidential, Sowore posted a screenshot of it on his Facebook page, which again attracted widespread reactions.
“As expected, the reactions were disparaging to the DSS and painted the service in bad light,” the witness said.
The prosecution tendered copies of the letters and screenshots of the reactions, which were admitted in evidence by the court.
Nosike further told the court that such inciting posts complicate the work of security agencies. “We have officers and men who have sworn an oath to put themselves on the line for the security and stability of this country. Such posts that generate tension make our work more difficult, and we take them very seriously,” he said.
At the end of his evidence-in-chief, the court invited the defence to cross-examine the witness. However, Abubakar requested an adjournment to enable him to study the testimony. While the prosecution objected, the court granted the adjournment but declined the defence’s request for a February date.
Justice Umar adjourned the case to January 27 for cross-examination and continuation of hearing.
Earlier, the defence had attempted to stall the commencement of trial, alleging that the prosecution failed to serve it with required documents. When confronted with proof of service from the court’s records, Abubakar initially claimed the documents were forged but later admitted service and apologised to the court and the prosecution.
Sowore is standing trial for alleged contravention of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024.