Alleged defamation: Sowore drops decision to summon DSS boss as witness

Omoyele Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, has rescinded his plan to summon the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Oluwatosin Ajayi, to testify in his defense. Sowore faces charges of criminal defamation, cyberstalking, and incitement for allegedly referring to President Bola Tinubu as "a criminal" in posts on X and Facebook.

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the defendant was alleged to have made false claims against the person of President Bola Tinubu by referring to him as “a criminal” in a post he made on his “X” and Facebook accounts.

Sowore's lawyer, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, had previously intended to subpoena Ajayi. The defense sought Ajayi's testimony and a specific letter dated September 7, 2025, which reportedly asked Sowore to retract his statements about Tinubu. The defense argued that a previous DSS official, Uwem Davies, who appeared as a witness, could not adequately address questions related to this letter, and since Davies stated he acted on the DG's directive, Ajayi's testimony was deemed necessary.

However, at a recent hearing before Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Olumide-Fusika changed his mind. This decision came after a heated discussion regarding the appearance of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, in the case without prior notice. Fagbemi, appearing for the prosecution, questioned the validity of the subpoena issued for the DSS Director-General, arguing that the invitation constituted an abuse of court process and that the subpoena had not been properly served on Ajayi.

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the prosecution is reinforced with the presence of the AGF and DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN).

Despite the initial intention to call the DSS Director-General, the defense has now altered its approach. The case is proceeding with the continuation of the defense's presentation, though the exact reasons for dropping the subpoena request for Ajayi remain unclear beyond the procedural arguments raised by the prosecution.

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the invitation to the DG, DSS, amounted to an abuse of the court’s process.