Court remands activist lawyer Dele Farotimi in prison, postpones bail hearing

A Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, Wednesday, remanded a lawyer and activist, Dele Farotimi, in prison over alleged defamation of Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and founder of Afe Babalola University Ado Ekiti (ABUAD).

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the police invaded Mr Farotimi’s office in Lekki, Lagos, on Tuesday to arrest him and take him to Ado Ekiti, following Mr Babalola’s petition.

Mr Babalola alleged in his petition that Mr Farotimi defamed him in his book, ‘Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System’.

The book, according to the prosecution, alleged that Mr Babalola corrupted the Supreme Court to procure a fraudulent judgment in the service of his clients.

The defendant pleaded not guilty Wednesday to the 16 counts preferred against him by the police.

The trial chief magistrate, Abayomi Adeosun, ordered that the defendant be remanded in the Ado Ekiti correctional centre for him to file a formal bail application.

He adjourned the case till Tuesday, 10 December, for the court to hear the bail application.

The prosecution, Samson Otsubu, had asked the court to remand Mr Farotimi in prison, while investigations continued.

He said Mr Farotimi’s co-conspirators are still at large and the published books are still in circulation.

“The Supreme Court judges mentioned in the book are yet to be investigated. To avoid threat to national security, we want to humbly say that the defendant be kept at Ado Ekiti correctional center pending the conclusion of the investigation,” the prosecutor said.

Defence lawyer Peter Akeredolu, leading three others, made an oral application for the defendant’s bail on Wednesday.

Mr Akeredolu said the alleged offences in the case are bailable.

“We are in this court when the charges were read and none of the charges is linked to capital offence which is not bailable. Chapter 35 of the 1999 constitution as amended guarantees the liberty of the people. This application is premised on the fact that an accused is presumed innocent until proven otherwise.

“The court should admit the defendant to bail on very liberal terms especially on self-recognisance. The man in the dock is a lawyer of 25 years standing. We pray the honourable court to grant him bail on self recognisance. There are three health challenges the defendant is currently managing.”

But ruling, the magistrate said he could not grant bail to the defendant based on an oral application.

“Enough materials have not been brought to the court to enable me to exercise my discretion. It is not enough to cite a plethora of cases like the defendant counsel have done,” the magistrate ruled.

PREMIUM TIMES