Omoyele Sowore’s legal team has withdrawn its demand that Department of State Services Director-General Oluwatosin Ajayi personally appear as a defence witness in his ongoing trial.
The decision was announced on Tuesday during proceedings before Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters and a former African Action Congress presidential candidate, is facing charges arising from comments published on his X and Facebook accounts.
The prosecution alleges that he made false statements about President Bola Tinubu by describing him as “a criminal.” The charges include alleged criminal defamation, cyberstalking and incitement, which remain subject to determination by the court.
Sowore’s lawyer, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, had informed the court on July 22 that the defence intended to subpoena the DSS Director-General.
Ajayi was expected to testify about a letter dated September 7, 2025, which requested that Sowore withdraw the disputed social media posts about Tinubu.
The defence sought Ajayi’s appearance after DSS official Uwem Davies testified as the second defence witness.
Olumide-Fusika said Davies had been unable to provide satisfactory answers to some questions relating to the letter and had stated that he acted on instructions from the DSS chief.
AGF Challenges DSS Chief’s Subpoena
Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, appeared for the prosecution when the case resumed on Tuesday.
He was joined by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, and other government lawyers.
Fagbemi challenged the validity of the subpoena issued for Ajayi, arguing that it had not been personally served on the DSS Director-General.
He also submitted that the subpoena documents failed to state when Ajayi was expected to appear before the court.
The Attorney-General further argued that the September 7 letter had already been admitted as evidence on two occasions.
According to him, summoning the head of the DSS over an official document was unnecessary because another authorised officer of the agency could address the relevant questions.
Fagbemi accused the defence of using the subpoena to delay proceedings, noting that the security agency had previously released one of its officials to testify for Sowore.
He asked the court to reject the request and direct the defence to continue presenting its case.
Defence Questions Fagbemi’s Appearance
Olumide-Fusika objected to the Attorney-General’s participation, arguing that the defence had not received prior notification that Fagbemi intended to take over the prosecution.
He maintained that the appropriate notice should have been filed if the AGF was replacing Kehinde, who had previously handled the case for the prosecution.
The defence lawyer asked for an opportunity to respond to legal authorities cited by Fagbemi and urged the court to disregard the Attorney-General’s submissions.
Before the court could set a date for further arguments, Fagbemi and Olumide-Fusika held a brief private discussion inside the courtroom.
Following the discussion, both sides agreed that Ajayi would not be required to appear personally.
The defence accepted that another appropriate DSS official could attend court and answer questions concerning the September 7, 2025 letter.
The lawyers subsequently informed the court that their earlier arguments had been overtaken by the agreement and that a ruling was no longer necessary.
Justice Umar adjourned the trial until August 3, when an official of the DSS is expected to appear as the next defence witness.
