A Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Oluwatosin Ajayi, is not required to appear and testify in person in the ongoing cyberbullying trial of Omoyele Sowore.
Justice Mohammed Garba Umar delivered the ruling on Monday. He dismissed an application brought by Sowore seeking an order to compel Ajayi to attend court under a subpoena. Sowore is being prosecuted by the DSS over social media posts published in August 2025 in which he described President Bola Tinubu as a criminal.
Sowore, through his counsel Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, had asked the court to order the Director-General’s personal appearance so that he could give evidence on official activities of the DSS relating to the case. The defence argued that the subpoena was issued in Ajayi’s name and that his evidence was necessary.
The DSS, represented by Akinlolu Thomas Kehinde, SAN, opposed the application. Prosecuting counsel submitted that the matter concerned official acts of the service rather than any personal conduct of the Director-General. He argued that another authorised officer of the agency was competent to give evidence on its behalf, citing an earlier Supreme Court decision in support of that position.
In his ruling, Justice Umar held that the subpoena related to an official act of the DSS and that the testimony sought was not personal to the Director-General. The court therefore determined that another DSS official could appear and give evidence for the agency. The application to compel Ajayi’s personal attendance was dismissed.
Following the ruling, the defence called a DSS investigating officer, Michael Jego, who gave evidence in place of the Director-General. The trial continues.
By A.Ikechukwu
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