Court Dismisses Sowore's Suit Against DSS and Meta Platforms

On August 26, 2025, the Abuja Federal High Court dismissed a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by Omoyele Sowore, a former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2023 elections, against the Department of State Services (DSS) and Meta Platforms, Inc. Justice Moham Garba Umar ruled that Sowore's claims lacked merit.

The suit alleged that Meta acted on the instructions of the DSS to remove a Facebook post that referred to President Bola Tinubu as a criminal, which led to the deactivation of Sowore's account. Sowore argued that this action violated his rights to a fair hearing and freedom of expression.

However, Justice Umar concluded that Sowore's allegations did not pertain to the fair hearing rights as outlined in Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution. The court found that the actions taken by Meta and the DSS did not constitute a violation of Sowore's constitutional rights.