Aare Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) has said that no amount of public outcry or media pressure will deter the legal action taken against Dele Farotimi, a human rights advocate.
The case centres on alleged defamation and cyberbullying claims tied to statements in Farotimi’s book: “Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System.”
Farotimi was arrested by operatives of the Ekiti State Police Command in Lagos on Tuesday, following a petition accusing him of criminal defamation against Babalola.
He was subsequently arraigned before an Ado-Ekiti magistrate court on Wednesday on a 16-count charge and remanded in custody after pleading not guilty to all charges.
The arrest has sparked reactions, including calls for Farotimi’s release from notable figures such as Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar, and Omoyele Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters.
Sowore urged Nigerians to protest what he described as judicial injustice.
However, Afe Babalola & Co., in a statement signed by Adebayo Adenipekun (SAN), defended their decision to pursue legal action.
“We acknowledge several concerns and suggestions on this subject and the inference that the firm and its members would be better served by ignoring these published falsehoods,” the statement said.
“However, if we do not take any action to correct the false, reckless, and malicious statements by this author, our silence will necessarily be interpreted as an admission of guilt.
“Afe Babalola & Co is a law-abiding organisation that operates strictly within the law. We are aware of the implications of the steps we are taking and the possibility of spin and manipulation by this author, his acolytes, uninformed members of the public, and others who, like him, view us maliciously.
“Still, we are convinced that the legal steps we take now and in the future are the only way to address the falsity of the author’s allegations and hold him to account for his deliberate assault on the integrity and reputation that our founder, Aare Afe Babalola, OFR, CFR, SAN, LLD, has built and passed on to us over the past seven decades using nothing but hard work, legal knowledge, and trenchant advocacy.”
The firm emphasised that the case was about setting the record straight rather than silencing dissent.
“The constitution recognises fundamental human rights, and our firm has championed these rights in over sixty years of its existence.
“However, these rights are not absolute; the freedom to speak is not freedom from consequences of speech. And the subject of speech also has a fundamental right to hold the speaker accountable using lawful means.”
Addressing Farotimi’s claims of bias within the judiciary, the firm stressed its trust in the legal system.
“Unlike him, we believe in the justice delivery system every time—not only when it favours us. In six decades of litigating cases across Nigeria, we have encountered several lawyers who prevailed against us in court.
“Their existence disproves Mr. Farotimi’s wild accusations and indicates that at the end of this process, only the law will matter—not the media tactic or street yelling.”
The firm reiterated that the matter was sub judice and expressed confidence in a fair judicial process, unlike Dele Farotimi.
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