By - Ghazali Ibrahim
The presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has withdrawn the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Oluwatosin Ajayi, as a defence witness in his ongoing trial over the alleged defamation of President Bola Tinubu.
At Tuesday’s hearing, Sowore told the court that the evidence he had intended to obtain from the DSS chief could instead be provided by another official of the security agency.
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), who appeared for the Federal Government, opposed the subpoena issued to Ajayi, arguing that the document the DSS boss was expected to testify on was not authored by him.
Fagbemi told the court that the letter directing Sowore to delete a social media post in which he allegedly described President Tinubu as a criminal had already been admitted as evidence on two occasions. He maintained that there was no justification for recalling the same document through another witness.
The Attorney General further noted that the author of the letter, Mr. Uwen Davis, had already testified before the court on July 22, 2026, and that the document was already part of the court’s record.
During the proceedings, Sowore’s counsel, Olumide Fusika (SAN), questioned Fagbemi’s appearance in the case, arguing that Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN) remained the Federal Government’s counsel on record.
Following the submissions of both parties, the court adjourned the matter until Monday, August 3, 2026, for the continuation of the defence.
