The 2027 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has called on President Bola Tinubu to remove the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Tosin Ajayi, over what he described as the agency’s handling of the criminal case against him.
Sowore made the demand while reacting to reports that the DSS had directed its private counsel, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, to suspend the cyberbullying case against him until after the presidential election.
According to reports, the decision followed a meeting involving Ajayi, Kehinde and senior officials of the DSS Legal Directorate on August 20.
Sowore, in a statement posted on his social media handles on Tuesday, described the development as evidence that the prosecution had “spectacularly run aground,” accusing the DSS leadership of turning the case into a personal campaign against him.
He alleged that Ajayi had, from the outset of the prosecution, pursued his conviction despite warnings about the consequences of the case.
“Something is eating away at DSS DG Tosin Ajayi and his increasingly desperate conduct shows it,” Sowore said.
He further alleged that he was abducted at gunpoint by DSS operatives at the Federal High Court and subsequently taken to Kuje Prison, where he claimed he was exposed to inmates suffering from tuberculosis.
Sowore also accused the agency of unlawfully detaining his assistant, Zainab Sodiq, following his release, alleging that her phone and his drone used for election monitoring were confiscated.
He claimed that there were attempts to compel Sodiq to secure his compliance with demands to delete social media posts critical of Ajayi and the DSS.
The AAC candidate also criticised the involvement of Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, in the proceedings, alleging that the minister personally appeared in court and intervened in the prosecution.
Sowore claimed that the prosecution had also sought to prevent Ajayi from appearing as a witness despite an alleged subpoena issued by the court.
The human rights activist further alleged that protests staged outside the Federal High Court in opposition to him were organised and funded, describing them as part of efforts to influence the proceedings.
According to him, the latest move to suspend the case represented an attempt by the DSS to “invent” a mechanism for pausing a criminal trial after the prosecution had encountered difficulties.
He also linked the development to what he described as an unsuccessful attempt by the DSS to track his movements during the Nigerian Bar Association’s Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt.
Sowore questioned why the head of a national intelligence agency would allegedly require public displays of support from groups and individuals praising his handling of the prosecution.
“Why does the head of a supposedly powerful intelligence agency need this much manufactured validation?” he asked.
He said the DSS should operate as a professional national security institution rather than as what he called a “personal revenge machine or public-relations department” for its director-general.
“The DSS is a national security institution, NOT Tosin Ajayi’s personal revenge machine or public-relations department,” he said.
Sowore subsequently called on President Tinubu to relieve Ajayi of his position immediately, arguing that the country needed an intelligence service that operated within the law.
“Something is eating away at Tosin Ajayi, and this spectacle is becoming unhealthy for the DSS and dangerous for Nigeria,” he said.
“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.”