SSS explains decision to suspend Sowore’s cyberstalking trial

Nigeria’s State Security Service wants to put Omoyele Sowore’s cyberstalking trial on hold so the human rights activist can take part in the 2027 election campaign.

Sowore, a presidential candidate for the African Action Congress, is being prosecuted over social media posts that described President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal.” The case has continued for almost a year. The SSS said proceedings would resume after the 2027 presidential election if the suspension is granted.

The agency’s director general, Oluwatosin Ajayi, instructed its lawyer, Akinola Kehinde, to seek the temporary pause. The SSS said the request would be formally presented to the Federal High Court when it resumes sittings on 14 September after its annual vacation.

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criminal

Festus Ogun, a constitutional lawyer, criticized the move as an abuse of judicial process and said the agency could have discontinued or withdrawn the case instead. The report noted that suspending the prosecution of a candidate before an election is not unusual, but it is not required by law. The decision rests with the prosecution, subject to court approval.

Kehinde said the request drew support from international agreements to which Nigeria is a party, including the ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. These instruments protect participation in public affairs and elections, but do not automatically give candidates immunity from prosecution. The court will decide whether to grant the request.

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formally communicated