JUST IN: Court grants Farotimi N50 million bail

A Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, has granted Dele Farotimi, a lawyer and human rights activist, a N50 million bail.

This development was shared by Omoyele Sowore, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress in the 2023 election, on his X handle.

Farotimi was arrested on 16 counts of criminal defamation and remanded in prison custody by the Ado-Ekiti magistrate court.

His trial stems from allegations of defamation against Aare Afe Babalola, a renowned Senior Advocate of Nigeria and founder of the Afe Babalola University, in his recently published book, ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System.’

The court’s decision to grant Farotimi bail has been met with mixed reactions. Sowore described Farotimi’s trial as “farcical” and called for the Attorney-General of Ekiti State to discontinue the trial immediately.

On the other hand, Babalola’s lawyers have stated that Farotimi will only regain his freedom if he can prove his allegations against Babalola.

The Take It Back Movement has also vowed to go ahead with its planned protests in Ekiti, Lagos, Abuja, London, and Canada, despite a directive by the Ekiti State Police Command banning unlawful gatherings and demonstrations.

The movement’s National Coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu, insisted that the police lack a legal basis to ban peaceful protests.