Sowore Slams DSS Over Alleged Screening of Senior Advocate Designates

|By Adejumo Adekunle

Former presidential candidate and activist, Omoyele Sowore, has condemned the Department of State Services (DSS) over its alleged plan to screen lawyers recently shortlisted for the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

Sowore, who contested the 2019 presidential election under the African Action Congress (AAC), voiced his outrage in a statement posted on his X account Tuesday.

His reaction followed concerns raised Monday by a senior advocate, Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro, who described the reported screening as illegal and a direct threat to the independence of the legal profession.

Sowore accused Nigeria’s leadership and institutions of capitulating to oppression.

“Nigerians, at nearly every level, have capitulated, weighed down by the sheer force of their individual and collective weaknesses,” he wrote.
“Imagine the DSS now screening Senior Advocates of Nigeria. The so-called guardians of justice are reduced to seeking clearance from the very instruments of oppression. C’est fini. Nigeria is down!”

As of press time, the DSS had neither confirmed nor denied the development.

In July 2025, the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) shortlisted 57 lawyers for possible elevation to the rank of SAN, Nigeria’s highest recognition for legal practitioners.