HRA Chairman Saad Kassis-Mohamed Calls On Nigeria To Drop Defamation Judgment Against Anti-Corruption Group SERAP
Abuja | June 23, 2026 The Human Rights Association (HRA) today calls on the Government of Nigeria to ensure the immediate withdrawal of the N100 million defamation judgment issued against the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) by the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja on 5 May 2026, to guarantee that SERAP and its staff are free to conduct their anti-corruption advocacy without fear of judicial, administrative, or security service reprisal, and to ensure that SERAP receives a fair, independent, and impartial appeal process in full conformity with Nigeria's obligations under international human rights law.
The HRA's review of documented cases confirms the following sequence of events. On 9 September 2024, SERAP published a post on the social media platform X reporting that officials of the Department of State Services had arrived at SERAP's Abuja office in unmarked vehicles, sought access to management staff, requested official documents, and questioned a front desk officer. According to SERAP, the officials departed only after journalists alerted by the organisation's post arrived at the premises. This visit occurred in the immediate aftermath of SERAP having issued statements calling for investigations into alleged corruption and mismanagement at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and having criticised increases in petrol pump prices. Two DSS officials named in SERAP's post, Sarah John and Gabriel Ogundele, subsequently brought a defamation suit against SERAP. On 5 May 2026, Justice Yusuf Halilu of the FCT High Court found SERAP liable and ordered it to pay N100 million in damages and to publish a public apology. SERAP filed a notice of appeal and an application for a stay of execution on 8 May 2026.
The HRA's review of documented cases finds that this judgment bears the hallmarks of a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, a mechanism by which powerful institutions use civil litigation to silence, bankrupt, or deter civil society organisations and journalists engaged in public interest advocacy. The sequence of events is consistent with this pattern: SERAP called for accountability at a major state-owned enterprise; security service officials appeared at its offices; and two of those officials then brought a defamation claim arising from SERAP's own reporting of that visit. The HRA notes that the effect of the judgment, if upheld on appeal, would be to impose a N100 million financial penalty on an anti-corruption organisation for reporting the conduct of the security services that visited its offices. The chilling effect on civil society organisations, journalists, and whistleblowers engaged in public interest work across Nigeria would be severe and well-documented in comparative jurisdictions where SLAPP litigation has been allowed to proceed unchallenged.
The HRA's review of documented cases further confirms that SERAP staff members have received threatening messages from individuals believed to be linked to security agencies following the organisation's decision to appeal the judgment, and that some staff have expressed concerns about returning to work out of fear of arrest, detention, or harassment. This context compounds the human rights concern: it is not only the judgment itself but the conditions under which SERAP is required to pursue its appeal that the HRA considers incompatible with Nigeria's obligations under Articles 19 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantee freedom of expression and freedom of association. The HRA calls on the Nigerian government to investigate these threats and to ensure the physical and psychological safety of SERAP's staff without delay.
HRA Chairman Saad Kassis-Mohamed stated: "SERAP reported that security officials had come to its offices. Two of those officials then sued SERAP for defamation, and a court ordered SERAP to pay N100 million and apologise publicly. Staff are now afraid to come to work. That is not a functioning legal system protecting individuals from false statements. That is a legal system being used to punish an organisation for reporting what happened at its own front door. SERAP called for accountability at NNPCL. It reported a visit by security officials. It is now facing a N100 million judgment for doing so. Nigeria's anti-corruption civil society cannot function under these conditions. The HRA calls on Nigeria to ensure that this judgment does not stand, that SERAP's appeal is heard fairly, and that the staff of this organisation are able to do their work without fear."
"A civil society organisation that calls for accountability at a state-owned enterprise, reports a security service visit to its offices, and then finds itself facing a N100 million defamation judgment brought by those same security officials has not lost a legal argument. It has been subjected to a legal weapon. Nigeria's constitution protects freedom of expression. Its courts must not be instruments for silencing those who exercise it in the public interest." Saad Kassis-Mohamed, Chairman, Human Rights Association.
The HRA calls specifically on the Government of Nigeria to ensure that the FCT High Court judgment against SERAP is stayed pending the full and fair determination of SERAP's appeal; to guarantee that SERAP receives an appeal process that is independent, impartial, and free from any interference by the executive branch or security services; to investigate the threatening messages received by SERAP staff members and hold those responsible to account; to ensure the physical and psychological safety of all SERAP staff members; to instruct the Department of State Services to refrain from any further visits, communications, or actions that could reasonably be construed as intimidation of SERAP or its staff; to conduct a genuine investigation into the allegations of corruption and mismanagement at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited raised by SERAP; and to ensure that civil society organisations, journalists, and whistleblowers engaged in public interest advocacy across Nigeria are able to do so without threat of judicial, administrative, or security service reprisal.
The Human Rights Association is an initiative of the WeCare Foundation, Cape Town, active across Africa, South Asia, and the Gulf region. The HRA works to protect the human rights of individuals facing unjust detention, denial of medical care, and due process violations, and engages directly with United Nations mechanisms to advocate on their behalf. For more information, visit wcrfoundation.com/human-rights-association.