The Department of State Services (DSS) has handed activist and Sahara Reporters publisher Omoyele Sowore a stern one-week deadline. The agency demands he retract a social media post they label as "false, malicious, and inciting," which targets President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

DSS's letter, dated September 7, 2025, accuses Sowore of making criminal and derogatory remarks against the President in a tweet posted on August 26, 2025. The agency’s warning is clear: non-compliance will lead to the DSS exploring "all lawful means" to uphold national security and public order.

Sowore, known for his activism and his run as a presidential candidate under the African Action Congress (AAC), did not hold back in his online critique. He called President Tinubu a "criminal" and accused him of lying to Nigerians after the President allegedly claimed in Brazil that corruption had been eradicated under his watch.

Uwem Davies, the DSS’s Director of Legal Services, conveyed that the remarks have stirred unrest among citizens and have the potential to incite public disturbances, disunity, and even rebellion.

"Your choice of words in the description of the President is false, malicious, and capable of inciting public disturbance, disunity, and breakdown of law and order," the DSS said in the letter addressed to Sowore.

"These statements are to say the least capable of causing insurrection, as they are odious, repugnant, derogatory, and uncomplimentary towards a person occupying the highest office of this country."

The security agency instructed Sowore to promptly retract his post on the X platform, ensuring the retraction adopts the same visibility as the original publication. Additionally, Sowore is mandated to issue a public apology in at least two prominent national newspapers and broadcast the same apology on two major television stations with nationwide coverage.

Furthermore, the Department of State Security (DSS) requested that Sowore submit a formal representation either in person at its headquarters, located at No. 1, Maitama Avenue, Three Arms Zone, Abuja, or via its official email addresses. This submission must be made within one week of receipt of the directive.

"Make an immediate and unequivocal retraction of the false and repugnant post through the same platform and with the same prominence as the initial post; publish a public apology in at least two national dailies and two television stations with national spread; and send your representation within one week of receipt of this letter," the letter read in part.

The Department of State Services (DSS) also notified the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, indicating that the issue has garnered attention from diplomatic channels, especially considering Sowore’s dual citizenship in Nigeria and the United States.

The secret service issued a reminder to Sowore, a vocal critic of successive Nigerian administrations, that those aiming to influence the country’s democratic landscape should exercise restraint and responsibility in their words and deeds.

"Persons of your status who are campaigning to lead this country as critical stakeholders of democracy must be of high integrity and therefore should exercise restraint and responsibility in their speech as well as action."

"Such individuals and organisations must, in addition, tailor their comments towards promoting peace, security, and good governance in the country," the DSS added.

The agency emphasized that its constitutional responsibility is to prevent Nigerians from being deceived by false propaganda. It also issued a warning that it would take decisive action if Sowore did not adhere to compliance.

"The DSS is a security intelligence organisation that has its mandate, inter alia, to ensure that Nigerians are not deceived with false propaganda.

"Consequently, if you fail to correct this false narrative, the Service shall, without further recourse to you, initiate measures it deems most appropriate within the ambit of the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria," it declared.

ASA