By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – The Federal Government has filed a four-count charge against former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, alongside X Corp (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc (owners of Facebook), at the Federal High Court, Abuja, over alleged cybercrime offences.
Specifically, the government charged Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, Facebook and X owners over his recent posts describing President Bola Tinubu as a criminal.
The charges came about a week after the Department of State Services (DSS), warned the publisher to delete his latest social media posts calling Tinubu a criminal. It also directed both X Incorp and Meta (Facebook) Incorp to delete Sowore’s posts, deactivate his account or face the consequences.
Court filings obtained on Tuesday show that the case was instituted by the Federal Republic of Nigeria as complainant against Sowore, X, and Meta as defendants, in the Abuja Judicial Division of the Federal High Court.
The charge sheet dated September 16, 2025, and signed by M. B. Abubakar, Director of Public Prosecutions at the Federal Ministry of Justice, lists the following counts:
“That you, Omoyele Sowore, sometime in 2025 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did knowingly send a message by means of computer systems and network via X (formerly Twitter) which you knew to be false for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred and ill will against the Federal Republic of Nigeria and its officials and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24 (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 and punishable under the same section of the Act.”
“That you, Omoyele Sowore, and X Corp, being an Internet intermediary, sometime in 2025 did permit the use of your platform for the transmission of false messages which you knew to be false for the purpose of causing public alarm and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24 (1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 and punishable under the same section of the Act.”
“That you, Omoyele Sowore, X Corp, and Meta Platforms Inc (Facebook), did conspire amongst yourselves to publish false and malicious content against the Federal Republic of Nigeria with intent to incite public disturbance and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 27 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 and punishable under the same section of the Act.”
“That you, Omoyele Sowore, X Corp, and Meta Platforms Inc (Facebook), did knowingly use your platforms for acts prejudicial to national security and public safety by inciting citizens against constituted authorities and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 24 (2) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 and punishable under the same section of the Act.”
The proof of evidence attached to the case contains a list of exhibits, witnesses, summary of evidence, and a case summary. Other lawyers on the prosecution team include ME Ernest, U.B. Bulla, C.S. Eze, and E.G. Orubor, who is listed as counsel to the prosecution from the Department of State Services (DSS).
If convicted, Sowore risks a combined sentence of up to 20 years imprisonment and fines running into tens of millions of naira under the Cybercrimes Act. X Corp and Meta, which are charged alongside him as internet intermediaries, could face heavy corporate fines amounting to over ₦40 million and potential restrictions on their operations within Nigeria.
The charges mark a fresh escalation in the government’s move to regulate online speech, with officials warning repeatedly in recent months that social media platforms must comply with Nigerian laws. The case is expected to test the limits of free expression, the liability of global tech companies operating in Nigeria, and the balance between digital rights and national security.