Human rights activist and 2027 presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has welcomed the Department of State Services’ decision to pause his alleged cybercrime trial, but says that is not enough, Peak Newspaper reports.
The DSS had instructed its lawyer to seek an adjournment of the case until after the 2027 elections, to avoid interfering with Sowore’s participation in the polls.
Reacting in a statement, Sowore described the development as proof that resistance works. He said the agency had been “forced to eat humble pie” over a prosecution he called unlawful and futile from the beginning.
“We have fought too many of these battles to be intimidated now and we have prevailed again and again,” he said. “From the brutal days of military dictatorship, through the dark years of Buhari, and now under the Tinubu regime, we have remained standing, resisting, organising, and fighting.”
Quoting Martin Luther King Jr., Sowore added, “A man can’t ride you unless your back is bent,” stressing that oppression grows only when people accept it.
While he noted the suspension, Sowore said the DSS must go further. He demanded a total withdrawal of the charge and a public apology to Nigerians for what he described as abuse of power.
He also asked the agency to return all his phones and electronic devices seized during the investigation. In addition, he called for the immediate release of phones and a drone allegedly taken from his assistant, Zainab Sodiq.
Sowore further insisted that the DSS pay the ₦3 million fine reportedly imposed on it by the court in connection with the case.
Despite the pause, he said his political struggle would continue. “Our struggle remains firm. Our resolve is unbroken. We are unstoppable,” he stated.
The DSS is yet to respond to Sowore’s demands.
