Omoyele Sowore, activist and politician, has taken legal steps against the Department of State Services (DSS), Meta, and X Corp by filing two separate fundamental rights suits at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
He is seeking protection from what he calls unlawful interference with his accounts, after his statement labeling President Bola Tinubu a criminal was flagged for removal.
In the case, Sowore is pressing the court to stop both Facebook and X from deleting the post, insisting that the right to free speech cannot be subjected to government control.
His lawyer, Tope Temokun, highlighted that the Constitution safeguards every citizen’s right to express opinions without censorship, stressing that no security body holds the authority to suspend or erase such rights.
Sowore further contended that Meta and X must not comply with any directives that restrict free expression, warning that their cooperation with unlawful orders would directly aid the silencing of citizens.
He is also asking the court to rule that the DSS has no statutory authority to censor Nigerians online and that international platforms should not be exploited as instruments of repression.
The petition states: “On behalf of our client, Omoyele Sowore @YeleSowore, we have filed two fundamental rights actions at the Federal High Court, Abuja, against the State Security Service (SSS) @OfficialDSSNG, @Meta (owners of @facebook), and @X Corp. (formerly Twitter).
“These lawsuits were filed to challenge the unconstitutional censorship initiated by the @OfficialDSSNG /SSS against Sowore’s accounts maintained with Meta and X.
“The lawsuit states categorically that this is about the survival of free speech in Nigeria. If state agencies can dictate to global platforms who may speak and what may be said, then no Nigerian is safe, their voices will be silenced at the whims of those in power.
“Censorship of political criticism is alien to democracy. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in Section 39, guarantees every citizen the right to freedom of expression, without interference. No security agency, no matter how powerful, can suspend or delete those rights.
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“Meta and X must also understand that when they bow to unlawful censorship demands, they become complicit in the suppression of the struggle for liberty. They cannot hide behind neutrality while authoritarianism is exported onto their platforms.”
The relief sought from the court reads: “That the SSS @OfficialDSSNG has no power in law to censor Nigerians on social media;
“That Meta and X must not lend their platforms as tools of repression; and
“That our client’s rights and by extension, the rights of all Nigerians, be fully protected against unlawful censorship.
“We call on all lovers of freedom, journalists, human rights defenders, and the Nigerian people to stand firm. Today it is @YeleSowore; tomorrow it may be you.
“This struggle is not about personalities. It is about principle. And we shall resist every attempt to turn Nigeria into a digital dictatorship.”