Court sends Farotimi to prison 24 hours after Ekiti strongman Afe Babalola orchestrated his arrest
Dele Farotimi, lawyer and human rights activist, has been remanded in prison custody 24 hours after police operatives abducted him in Lagos and forcibly took him to Ekiti over defamation petition filed by strongman Afe Babalola.
Mr Farotimi was abducted from his office in Lagos on Tuesday and bundled to Ekiti, where Mr Babalola resides, a development that has sparked widespread criticism.
Omoyele Sowore, publisher of SaharaReporters, announced the remand Mr Farotimi on Wednesday.
He said the case was adjourned until December 10.
“The Nigerian justice system is whack, as expected @DeleFarotimi has been hurriedly prosecuted and sent to prison after being denied bail by a judge in Ado Ekiti pre-arranged to do the same,” Mr Sowore stated on X.
Berating the police, Mr Babalola and the judiciary, Mr Sowore said, “The @policeng, Chief Afe Babalola, SAN, and the judicial officers had it all planned out even before they sent the goons from Ekiti state command RRS (formerly SARS) to abduct him.”
This comes as Nigerians criticise Mr Babalola for orchestrating the arrest of Mr Farotimi over defamation, which is not a criminal case.
Before his arrest on Tuesday, Mr Farotimi in a statement had raised the alarm that Mr Babalola would use the police to hound and have tried in Ekiti, where the legal icon has influence over the judicial system.
Meanwhile, Nigerian lawyers have condemned the arrest.
“The distance from Lagos to Ekiti State is more than 7 hours.There is no airport in Ekiti. That is the horrendous journey that the @PoliceNG is embarking on because of alleged case of defamation of character. Dele Farotimi wrote about the rot in the Nigerian Criminal Justice System, and he is experiencing it again in real time,” Inibehe Effiong, a lawyer, said on X.
Deji Adeyanju, activist and lawyer, said, “Police kidnapped a lawyer from Lagos & drove him all the way to Ekiti over a defamation issue & you all wonder why Nigeria is cursed. And this petition was done by a sage in the legal profession, our very own Baba Afe Babalola. May we not descend this low in old age. Shame!”
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
States
Independence: NBA urges Nigerians to expect better future
The NBA said that ordinary Nigerians should be deriving benefit from the subsidy removal rather than hardship.
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
Heading 2
Tinubu’s economic reforms yielding results despite doubts: Bagudu
Mr Bagudu described Mr Tinubu as a visionary leader whose decisions demonstrated courage and commitment to national development.
Sport
Flamingos lose 2-1 to Poland in FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup opener
Poland’s Natalia Skrok made it two in the second half when Blanka Zajac, in the 65th minute, crossed into the Nigerian penalty area.
States
Gov Mbah scraps N750 daily ticket fee for Enugu tricycle operators, extends work hours
Mr Mbah also disclosed that tricycle operators would continue to use the state’s modern transport terminals free of charge.
States
FG unveils five-point strategy to tackle banditry, terrorism in Sokoto
Mr Ribadu called for sustained security deployments around vulnerable settlements, forest corridors and border communities.
Politics
2027: Wike urges Rivers traditional leaders to avoid ‘mistake’, back Tinubu for prosperity
Mr Wike said, “Supporting Tinubu is a support for prosperity.”
Heading 4
NAPTIP raises alarm over rise in parents’ facilitation of children’s sexual exploitation
The NAPTIP boss said parents and guardians were facilitating the sexual exploitation of their children to make money.
