Omoyele Sowore has lost his fundamental rights enforcement suit against the Department of State Services (DSS), its Director General, and Facebook. Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja delivered the judgment on Thursday, resolving all three issues in the case against Sowore. The court dismissed the suit and ordered the plaintiff to pay N1.5 million in costs. Sowore had accused the DSS of unlawful arrest and detention, and claimed Facebook collaborated with the agency by taking down his posts. The DSS and Facebook denied the allegations, with both parties maintaining their actions were lawful. The court found no merit in Sowore's claims and upheld the positions of the defendants.
Sowore's defeat in court and the N1.5 million cost order signal that legal challenges against state security agencies and global tech firms face high hurdles, even on rights grounds. The judgment gives no indication that the DSS's operational conduct will be curtailed by judicial intervention. For Nigerians who rely on social media to criticise government actions, the ruling suggests that platform takedowns with alleged state involvement may continue without legal remedy. This outcome reinforces the difficulty of holding powerful institutions accountable through litigation alone.
