FG Gives X.com 24 Hours to Delete Sowore’s Anti-Tinubu Tweet
Federal Government of Nigeria has formally issued a 24-hour ultimatum to X.com, demanding the removal of a controversial tweet posted by politician and activist Omoyele Sowore. The tweet directly targeted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over a statement he reportedly made in Brazil, declaring that corruption had ended under his administration.
Sowore’s tweet, obtained by PulseNets, read: “This criminal @officialABAT actually went to Brazil to state that there is NO MORE corruption under his regime in Nigeria. What audacity to lie shamelessly!”
According to an official letter sighted by PulseNets, the Department of State Services (DSS), in correspondence addressed to the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of X.com in Bastrop County, Texas, described Sowore’s post as misleading, deliberately harmful, inciting, and a calculated attempt to disparage the Nigerian president. The letter further accused the activist of engaging in cybercrime, hate speech, and online provocation capable of destabilising national security.
The document, dated September 6, 2025, and signed by Mr. B. Bamigboye on behalf of the Director-General of the DSS, stated that Sowore’s publication was not only “embarrassing to the person of President Tinubu” but also “capable of causing nationwide unrest.”
PulseNets learnt that the security agency referenced several laws in its petition, insisting that the activist’s tweet violated:
-
Section 51 of the Criminal Code Act Cap 77, which criminalises the publication of false information.
-
Sections 19, 22, and 24 of the Cybercrime Act 2025, which prohibit the spread of fake news, offensive or humiliating online content, and digital communications intended to provoke ethnic, religious, or tribal hatred.
-
Section 2 of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act 2022, which proscribes inflammatory online publications capable of inciting instability.
The DSS argued that both the author of the tweet and X.com as the platform hosting it could be held “criminally liable for propagating an offence.”
The letter, obtained by PulseNets, further warned: “The author and purveyor of the inflammatory online publication against Mr. President is very much aware that the content is prohibited by Nigerian law. It constitutes online harassment, abuse, hate speech, and a willful attempt to discredit Nigeria in the comity of nations.”
In a stern demand to X.com, the DSS declared: “This demand is unequivocal with attendant consequences. Should you fail, neglect, or refuse to comply, the Federal Government of Nigeria will be compelled to take sweeping measures through our organisation whose mandate covers such criminal acts. Having made this official, 24 hours is sufficient enough to take necessary action.”
Also Read: Nigerian Immigration Detains Sowore, Confiscates Passport
PulseNets reports that the ultimatum underscores the growing tension between Nigeria’s government and outspoken critics online, as authorities intensify their clampdown on what they describe as “fake news and cyber incitement.”
At the time of filing this report, PulseNets could not independently verify whether X.com had responded to the Nigerian government’s ultimatum.
