Sowore Rejects DSS Request as X Confirms No Action Taken on His Account

Human rights activist and presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has reacted to a notification from social media platform X (formerly Twitter) confirming receipt of a takedown request from Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) regarding his account, @YeleSowore.. Read ..Full.. Article.. .

In a post shared Sunday morning, Sowore disclosed that X formally reached out to him about the “despicable threat letter” it received from the DSS over his critical tweet on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

According to the message from X, the DSS alleged that Sowore’s tweet violated Nigerian laws. However, X emphasized that it had “not taken any action on the reported content” and informed him strictly for the sake of transparency.

The platform further explained its policy of notifying users whenever governments or state agencies request content removal, even if no action is taken.

“One option I will NOT be taking is deleting that Tweet. Thank you, @X,” Sowore stated in his response.

X encouraged Sowore to evaluate the request, seek legal advice if necessary, and noted that further details on government takedown requests are publicly available in its Transparency Report.

The DSS had earlier written a strongly worded petition to X demanding Sowore’s account be deactivated within 24 hours, accusing him of spreading false information, hate speech, and incitement against the President.

X Official Email as shared by  Omoyele Sowore:

Hello @YeleSowore,

In the interest of transparency, we are writing to inform you that X has received a request from Department of State Services regarding your X account, @YeleSowore, that claims the following content violates the law(s) of Nigeria.

@YeleSowore

We have not taken any action on the reported content at this time as a result of this request.

As X strongly believes in defending and respecting the voice of our users, it is our policy to notify our users if we receive a legal request from an authorized entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account. We provide notice whether or not the user lives in the country where the request originated. This page provides more information:
help.x.com/en/rules-and-p…

We understand that receiving this type of notice can be an unsettling experience. While X is not able to provide legal advice, we want you to have an opportunity to evaluate the request and, if you wish, take appropriate action to protect your interests. This may include seeking legal counsel and challenging the request in court, contacting relevant civil society organizations, voluntarily deleting the content (if applicable), or finding some other resolution. For more information on legal requests X receives from governments worldwide, please refer to this, and..  Read . .More —