Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has called for the immediate removal of the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Tosin Ajayi, accusing him of allegedly using the security agency to pursue a personal vendetta.
Sowore made the allegations in a post on his X account, formerly Twitter, where he criticised Ajayi’s handling of the criminal prosecution arising from his controversial “Tinubu is a criminal” remark.
The activist alleged that the DSS Director-General had sought to influence the outcome of the case against him, including allegedly boasting that he would ensure his imprisonment.
“I was reliably informed that he boasted that he would get Justice M.G. Umar to jail me,” Sowore alleged.
Sowore claimed that following the commencement of the prosecution, he was arrested and subsequently remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre, where he alleged that he was exposed to inmates suffering from tuberculosis.
He further alleged that DSS operatives invaded the Federal High Court premises, abducted him at gunpoint and held him at the court’s basement.
According to him, following his release, DSS operatives allegedly detained his assistant, Zainab Sodiq, seized their mobile phones and confiscated a drone he said was used for election monitoring.
Sowore also alleged that there were threats that his assistant would not be released unless he deleted social media posts critical of Ajayi and the DSS.
The activist further accused the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, of personally intervening in the prosecution.
According to Sowore, Fagbemi appeared in court and took over the prosecution in what he described as an attempt to prevent the DSS Director-General from appearing as a witness after he was allegedly subpoenaed by the court.
Sowore also alleged that his lead counsel, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, was threatened by the presiding judge after confronting issues relating to the conduct of the trial.
“But we did not back down,” Sowore said.
He further alleged that individuals were mobilised to stage protests against him at the Federal High Court, describing the demonstrations as an attempt to influence public perception of the case.
Sowore said the prosecution had now run into difficulties, accusing the DSS of attempting what he described as a novel legal approach of “pausing” a criminal trial.
He also alleged that the development followed what he described as a failed attempt to track his movements while he attended the Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt.
The activist questioned what he described as recent media appearances and press conferences by individuals and groups praising the DSS Director-General over the prosecution.
“Why does the head of a supposedly powerful intelligence agency need this much manufactured validation?” Sowore asked.
He insisted that the DSS should operate as a professional national security institution and not as an instrument for pursuing personal or political interests.
“The DSS is a national security institution, not Tosin Ajayi’s personal revenge machine or public-relations department,” he said.
Sowore subsequently called for Ajayi’s immediate removal from office, arguing that the conduct he attributed to the DSS Director-General was damaging to the country’s intelligence and security institutions.
“He should be relieved of his duties immediately. Nigeria needs a professional intelligence service governed by law, not one driven by the ego, insecurities and political misadventures of its Director-General,” Sowore said.
The allegations made by Sowore are his personal claims and could not be independently verified. The DSS had yet to publicly respond to the latest allegations as of the time of filing this report.
