The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Amnesty International Nigeria have called for the withdrawal of criminal charges filed by the federal government against Nigerian activist, Omoyele Sowore, and two social media platforms.
The federal government, had last week, filed criminal charges against Sowore and X, formerly Twitter, and Facebook over alleged posts critical of President Bola Tinubu.
The two organisations made the call in a joint letter dated September 20, 2025 and signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, and Amnesty International Nigeria’s Director, Isa Sanusi.
They urged the president to direct Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, to immediately withdraw the charges against them.
The organisations called on Tinubu to prevent the State Security Services (SSS) and other security agencies from “misusing judicial processes to silence dissent.”
They also called on Tinubu to prevail on the State Security Services (SSS) and other security agencies from misusing judicial processes to silence dissent.
The two organisations said weaponisation of the justice system to crack down on peaceful dissent is entirely inconsistent with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) and the country’s international human rights obligations.
They also urged the president to instruct the Attorney General of the Federation to present an anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) bill to the National Assembly, aimed at curbing the use of lawsuits to muzzle public criticism.
They urged the president to “direct the attorney general to urgently prepare an anti-SLAPP legislation for the National Assembly, to protect Nigerians from the weaponization of the justice system by the DSS and other security and law enforcement agencies and to safeguard the right to freedom of expression.
“SLAPP and criminal defamation lawsuits are neither necessary nor proportionate” and have a chilling effect that stifles free expression.
“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right and full enjoyment of this right is central to achieving individual freedom and to developing democracy. It is not only the cornerstone of democracy, but indispensable to a thriving civil society.
“Your government has the legal obligations to prevent harassment through legal processes against Nigerians peacefully exercising their human rights, and to protect the legitimacy, independence and impartiality of the hearing of the lawsuit on the Cybercrimes Act pending before the ECOWAS Court,” the letter said.
