Human rights activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has rejected a reported directive from the Department of State Services (DSS) to delete a social media post criticizing President Bola Tinubu.

Sowore said on Sunday that he was formally notified by X (formerly Twitter) that the DSS had issued a legal request demanding the removal of his post.

In a statement via his handle, @YeleSowore, he wrote: “X officially contacted me this morning about a threat letter they received from the lawless DSS regarding my Tweet on Tinubu. Deleting that Tweet is one option I will NOT take. Thank you, @X.”

He also published X’s notification, which confirmed that while the DSS claimed his post violated Nigerian law, no enforcement action had been taken. X explained that its policy is to alert users when such requests are made and reaffirmed Sowore’s right to challenge the claim in court or through civil society channels.

Sowore, who doubles as publisher of Sahara Reporters, is a longtime critic of successive Nigerian governments. He contested the presidency in 2019 and 2023 and has led multiple pro-democracy movements. In 2019, he was detained for several months by the DSS after launching the “RevolutionNow” campaign, despite being granted bail by the courts.

The DSS has often faced accusations from rights advocates of stifling dissent and curbing free expression. Nigeria itself has a fraught history with social media regulation, most notably the 2021 suspension of Twitter after it removed a post by then-President Muhammadu Buhari.

Reiterating his stance on Sunday, Sowore argued that his remarks on Tinubu are protected under the constitution and condemned the DSS for what he described as attempts to silence opposing voices through intimidation.