Facts have emerged of the background to an Ado-Ekiti Magistrate court on Wednesday remanding Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi.
He pleaded not guilty to all the 16-count charge, wrapped around his alleged defamation of Chief Afe Babalola SAN, Founder and Proprietor of Afe Babalola University.
He was arrested in his law chambers in Lagos on Tuesday by officers from Ekiti State Police Command, and was arraigned for allegedly publishing a book, Nigeria and It’s Criminal Justice System, where he alleged that Aare Afe Babalola corrupted the Judiciary and procured judgements in the Supreme Court thereby exposing the 92-year-old SAN to hatred, contempt, ridicule and damage his hard earn career.
Police prosecutor, Samson Osun called for the remand of the suspect in prison custody pending further investigation and it’s outcome for the maintenance of security in the country.
Counsel to the defendant, Dayo Akeredolu opposed the remand call and pleaded with the court to admit the defendant to bail on very liberal terms and on self recognisance because the case at hand is bailable and the suspect is a known figure who is not constituting any threat .
However, presiding Magistrate, Abayomi Adeosun, remanded the suspect in prison custody and adjourned hearing till December 10.
DETAILS OF DELE FAROTIMI’S DEFAMATION OF AFE BABALOLA
This is not a biography for I have painstakingly provided glimpses of my early life in an earlier sequel to my first book.
My purpose here is to tell you the story of my sojourn within the Nigerian legal system and to show you how our justice system- the Nigerian justice system is in itself criminal, lending credence to how the criminality of the judiciary is completely reflective of the Nigerian state in its full ramifications and with full evidence of how this rot having become systemic is insidious and reaches to the very top of the judicial system.
I will tell you the story of the complete and total loss of the capacity, to deliver justice against the backdrop of a case that was decided by the Supreme Court and which records are in the public domain.
I speak specifically of the case of Major Muritala Gbadamosi 8c Ors v. H.R.H Oba Tijani Akinloye & Ors otherwise known as the Gbadamosi-Eletu case.
It is my contention regarding this case:
1 That Aare Afe Babalola corrupted the Supreme Court to procure a fraudulent judgment in the service of his clients.
- That the law firm of S. B. Joseph & Co. procured 2 warrants to execute the said judgment by doctoring the original judgment of the Supreme Court
- That Atilade O, Justice at the time and the Administrative Judge of the Lagos Judicial Division, unlawfully issued a warrant of execution based on the doctored judgment and without the enrolled order of the Supreme Court.
- That Atilade, J quashed the fraudulently obtained warrant following an application of counsel in protest against same.
- That Aare Afe Babalola, Olu Daramola, Olu Faro and the law offices of Afe Babalola & Co, (Emmanuel Chambers) compromised the Supreme Court and the remaining semblance of integrity it might have had, when they went back to the Supreme Court and got that court to swim in the sewer of corruption and shameful self-abnegation.
- That Lawal Pedro SAN, at the material time the Solicitor-General of Lagos State, corrupted himself, abandoned the interests of the State, its citizens and any pretense to decency and became the undisguised attorney to the Eletu family thus betraying the public trust.
- That Afe Babalola libelled me and the fact of the libel became known to me in his suit against Lawal Pedro SAN.
- That I sued Afe Babalola SAN for libel and that he leveraged his influence in the judiciary to deny me justice.
- That Oyekan-Abdullai, J was the instrument of injustice employed to deny me my day in court.
- That the Nigerian Justice System is criminal and complicit and can therefore not uphold the tenets of true justice nor dispense thereof to which it is sworn.
The story I intend to tell is wrapped around the above facts and have been carefully espoused to highlight only the facts of the matter. After all, of what use is a lawyer without his facts?
