NIGERIA: UPDATED: Dele Farotimi Released From Ekiti

By Ameenat Hamzat, Lagos Nigeria 

The Nigerian human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, who has been persecuted for weeks for defamation by one of the Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Afe Babalola, has been released from prison in Ekiti.

A former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, announced this in a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday.

“I am pleased to report that Dele Farotimi is no longer being held at the prison yards in Ekiti State and is now returning home to Lagos,” Sowore wrote.

“The struggle continues! Happy holidays to you all!”

Background of His Arrest

Dele Farotimi is a renowned lawyer with years of experience. On the 2nd of July, 2024, he released a book titled Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System.

Months after the release of his 116-paged book, Farotimi was accused of defamation by Afe Babalola.

Farotimi was arrested in his office in Lagos on the 3rd of December by a group of policemen from the Ekiti State Police Command and was subsequently transported to Ekiti State.

Aside from the defamation charges brought against Farotimi at an Ekiti State Magistrate Court by Babalola’s team, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, also filed 12 additional charges against the lawyer on the 6th of December, 2024, at an Ekiti Federal High Court.

Additionally, an Abuja High Court ordered multiple security agencies across the country to seize physical copies of Farotimi’s book from all bookstands and stores nationwide.

The court also prohibited further publishing, selling, circulating, advertising, or distributing either the physical, hard, or digital/soft copies of the book online, electronically, physically, or by any other means.

The arrest of Farotimi spurred several reactions from Nigerians, with many labeling it “an unlawful arrest” and calling for a protest.

Eventually, on the 20th of December, the lawyer was granted bail by an Ekiti State Magistrate Court.

The bail conditions included a N30 million bond, two sureties, one of whom must be a property owner, submission of Farotimi’s passport, and a prohibition of Farotimi granting media interviews once released.