- Aare Afe Babalola outlined conditions for resolving Dele Farotimi’s criminal defamation case
- Conditions for case resolution included a retraction of Farotimi’s not-guilty plea and a published apology in major newspapers
- Farotimi insisted charges must be dropped before offering any apology
Aare Afe Babalola, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has reportedly outlined conditions for resolving the ongoing criminal defamation case involving Dele Farotimi, an activist lawyer and a prominent spokesperson for the Obi/Datti Presidential Campaign in the 2023 election.
Farotimi, who is currently detained in Ado-Ekiti prison, has been at the centre of a legal battle over alleged defamation. On Monday, December 9, Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election reportedly visited Chief Babalola in Ado-Ekiti, accompanied by Sola Ebiseni, the Southwest Coordinator of his campaign.
Peter Obi stands by Dele Farotimi, visits Aare Babalola
Following their meeting with Babalola, Obi and Ebiseni also visited Farotimi in prison. Undisclosed sources close to the discussion, according to The Nation, revealed that during the two-hour conversation between Obi and Babalola, the legal expert outlined specific conditions for a potential resolution to the case.
Aare Afe Babalola has reportedly told Peter Obi that Dele Farotimi must retract his not-guilty plea in the ongoing defamation case. The nonagenarian lawyer also asked for a published rebuttal in major newspapers. If Farotimi declines to plead guilty, Babalola is said to have instructed that he must prove the validity of his allegations.
“Baba Afe told Obi that he (Babalola) has nothing to gain by Farotimi’s incarceration. If he says the allegations are false and offers apology in some newspapers, then, the case can be withdrawn,” the source stated.
The source further disclosed that Farotimi made it clear that the charges against him must be dropped before he would offer an apology.
Obi's visit to Babalola unconnected to Farotimi’s requests
According to another source, Peter Obi’s visit to Aare Afe Babalola was not due to any request from Dele Farotimi. The visit was described as Obi’s effort to stand by a member of his presidential campaign team who is facing legal issues.
Recall that Dele Farotimi was arrested in Lagos and brought before Magistrate Abayomi Adeosun in Ado-Ekiti on charges of criminal defamation.
The case stemmed from a petition filed by Chief Afe Babalola, who accused Farotimi of defaming his character in the book Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System, authored and published by Farotimi.
Dele Farotimi was arraigned before the Federal High Court on Monday, December 9 and was granted bail in the amount of N50 million. However, when he appeared in the Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, his remand order was extended until December 20.
Court orders VeryDarkMan to delete defamatory posts about Falana, Falz
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that on September 24, VeryDarkMan allegedly made defamatory comments about Falanas in a leaked audio of Bobrisky.
VeryDarkMan’s comment stirred controversy leading to a lawsuit filed by Femi Falana against VeryDarkMan.