The State Security Service has directed its private counsel to take steps towards suspending the cyberbullying case instituted against African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore until after the 2027 presidential election, in order to allow him participate fully in the electoral process.
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The decision reportedly followed an August 20, 2026 meeting involving the Director-General of the SSS, Oluwatosin Ajayi, Senior Advocate of Nigeria Akinolu Kehinde, who is handling the matter for the agency, and senior officials of its legal directorate.
According to a source familiar with the meeting, the SSS leadership considered it appropriate to place the case on hold following the commencement of presidential campaigns ahead of the January 16, 2027 election.
The source said Ajayi took the position that continuing with the criminal proceedings during the campaign period could interfere with Sowore’s participation in the election.
“The SSS boss reportedly told the Senior Advocate and his directorate of legal services that, with the commencement of presidential campaigns, it would only be fair to pause the court case in order to enable Sowore fully participate in the upcoming elections without let or hindrance,” the source said.
The SSS Director-General was also said to have reasoned that the case had already been before the court for almost one year and that suspending proceedings for approximately four additional months would not substantially affect the matter.
“The SSS boss told the lawyers that, since the matter had been in court for nearly a year, suspending it for another four months wouldn’t make much difference,” the source added.
The agency is expected to formally communicate its decision to the Federal High Court when the court resumes normal sittings from September 14 following the annual judicial vacation.
Any suspension would, however, remain subject to the appropriate court process and would effectively place the proceedings in abeyance throughout the presidential campaign and election period.
The case arose from posts Sowore made on his X and Facebook accounts on August 25, 2025, in which he referred to President Bola Tinubu using language the SSS considered potentially defamatory and cyberbullying.
Following the posts, the security agency reportedly gave Sowore seven days to delete them, but he declined to comply with the directive.
The SSS subsequently approached the Federal High Court seeking a judicial determination on whether describing President Tinubu as a “criminal” on social media, in the absence of a court judgment to that effect, amounted to an offence under Nigeria’s cybercrime laws.
The agency maintained that the proceedings were intended to obtain judicial interpretation on whether an individual could publicly describe another person as a criminal without a subsisting judicial pronouncement establishing criminal liability.
Sowore’s case has since remained before the Federal High Court, with the proceedings attracting attention because of the intersection between freedom of expression, political speech and the provisions of Nigeria’s cybercrime legislation.
The reported decision to suspend the case therefore does not amount to its withdrawal or discontinuance. Rather, the SSS is expected to ask that further proceedings be paused until after the 2027 presidential election, following which the matter could resume depending on the court’s orders and subsequent steps taken by the parties.
If the court grants the request, Sowore would be able to participate in the presidential campaign and election without having to simultaneously attend proceedings in the cyberbullying case during the campaign period.
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