Dele Farotimi, the lawyer and activist who is being tried charges bordering on criminal defamation of Afe Babalola, SAN, has to wait for ten more days before his bail application would be heard.
This follows the postponement by a Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State where the activist is facing trial.
Farotimi was last Wednesday on December 4 arraigned and ordered remanded by the trial court in the correctional facility in Ado Ekiti.
He had pleaded not guilty to all 16 counts of criminal defamation but the trial magistrate, Abayomi Adeosun turned down his lawyer’s subsequent oral application for bail, saying he preferred a formal application and adjourned adjourned the hearing of the bail application till Tuesday (today).
Farotimi had earlier been arrested in Lagos by security operatives before being rushed to Ado Ekiti for trial.
Magistrate Adeosun again adjourned the hearing of the bail application during Tuesday’s proceeding, following the opposition Samson Osobu, the prosecuting lawyer, to the appearance of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, as leader of Farotimi’s defence.Osobu had argued that under the Nigerian law, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria is not allowed to appear before a magistrate’s court, citing the recent judgement of the Court of Appeal, Ibadan Division, Oyo State, delivered on July 16.
However, Olumide-Fusika differed with him and explained that the Ekiti State Magistrate Court Law enacted by the House of Assembly allowed lawyers irrespective of status and title to appear in the court, especially in criminal matters such was the case under reference.
Consequently, the trial magistrate postponed his ruling on the matter to enable him read the judgement cited by the prosecutor.
Meanwhile, Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in last year’s election, had on Monday made a diplomatic shuttle to Ekiti State where he met with Afe Babalola and Farotimi over the legal tango.
Babalola reportedly told him that everything depended on Farotimi showing remorse for his action.
Reacting to the visit, human rights activist and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, Omoyele Sowore, condemned Obi’s move.
Sowore wrote on his X handle on Monday night: “I condemn those who went to ‘beg’ Chief Afe Babalola today over unjust detention and persecution of DeleFarotimi. The delegation led by PeterObi did colossal injustice to the struggle to drain the swamp of judicial criminality in our country.
“Obi’s action is like forcing Rosa Parks to return to the back of the bus of racial injustice during the civil rights era in the United States! The struggle continues!FreeDeleFarotimiNow.”
