A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Olu Daramola, a partner at Afe Babalola & Co., has lodged a N500 million lawsuit against Tomilola Titus Farotimi, aka Farotimi, for alleged defamation in his book titled, ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’.
The case was lodged at the Ojodu Abiodun Division of the Ogun State High Court on December 13, 2024. The writ, marked HCO/65/24, was submitted on behalf of Daramola by his legal representative, Iheanyichukwu C. Uwa.
Daramola claims that certain remarks on page 64 of the book are defamatory, alleging that the publication subjected him to “ridicule, odium, disrespect, disrepute, and scorn” in the eyes of the public.
He seeks a court declaration that the book has damaged his character, reputation, and professional standing as a diligent and trustworthy lawyer.
Also, the claimant is seeking an order of the court awarding N500,000 against the defendant being exemplary and general damages in favour of the claimant for the book authored by the defendant and said to be in circulation all over the country.
The claimant sought an order from the court compelling the defendant to publish an unreserved apology in the Guardian Newspaper and The Punch or any other two widely national newspapers retracting the said libelous excerpts as contained in the book authored by the defendant and within the jurisdiction of the court.
The claimant sought an order of the court directing the recovery and destruction of the book authored by the defendant and currently in circulation across Nigeria and within the jurisdiction of the court in both hard and soft copy formats from all bookshops, libraries, archives, booksellers, social media and online platforms amongst others.
The lawsuit further demands a perpetual injunction to prevent Farotimi, his agents, or associates from publishing or distributing the book in any format.
Additionally, Daramola seeks an interest of 10% per annum on any awarded judgment sum until the debt is fully settled.
Farotimi, currently in custody of the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS), has yet to respond to the latest claims.
A hearing date for the suit has not been announced.
Moreover, this latest legal action follows a similar lawsuit filed last month by Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), who alleged defamation in the same book.
Chief Babalola, founder of Afe Babalola University Ado Ekiti (ABUAD), had petitioned the police in the state.
Babalola’s petition led to the police filing criminal defamation charges against Farotimi, leading to his arraignment at a chief magistrate’s court in Ado Ekiti.
During the proceedings, Mr Farotimi denied the charges. The trial magistrate subsequently ordered his remand in prison and scheduled the hearing of his bail application.
I did not send anybody to beg Afe Babalola — Farotimi
Dele Farotimi, human rights activist and lawyer, on Friday, made it clear that he opposed any attempts to mediate or beg for his release, stating that the legal process should take its natural route.
He said this after the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the last election, Peter Obi, visited Afe Babalola.
Obi had reportedly pleaded with the legal jurist to consider the “situation” of Dele Farotimi following the public outcry that greeted his arrest.
Farotimi, who said this while speaking with fellow human rights lawyer, Tope Temokun, who visited him in prison, warned those who visited Afe Babalola, including Obi, never to visit anyone to plead for his release.
Temokun stated that Farotimi was being detained in prison while his opponents were lodging lawsuits in Ibadan, Abuja, and Rivers, seemingly preparing for a legal show down.
He said, ironically, they were serving all the court processes on a man detained in a prison cell in Ekiti, where he could not readily defend himself.
According to Temokun, “Around 4:30pm of this day, Friday, the 13th of December, 2024, we stepped out of the Correctional Service (prison) in Afao road, Ado Ekiti, where we were with Dele Farotimi.
“He speaks calmly but with loud message. He is unambiguous about it, that all he wrote in his book is the truth. One thing is clear from this visit and hours long talk, that Dele Farotimi knows things that the crowd does not know.”
“He wants this matter to travel the natural route. He disowned in categorical terms, any move by anybody to beg anyone on his behalf or as a condition for his release.
“He assertively, vibrantly and untiringly posited that if he had added a single lie to his claims in his book, he would lose heavily in this battle. But if his weapon remains all truth, he will have the last laugh.
“Those who postulated that Dele Farotimi is reckless in his writings and documentations, should rather demand a fair play and a level play ground so that we could hear the other side.”
Speaking further, Temokun said that citizens should be interested to know what he knows as proof.
“But Farotimi is kept in prison while his opponents are tooling up in law suits in Ibadan, Abuja and Rivers seeminly poised for a fight and funnily serving all these court processes on a man in his prison cell in Ekiti where he cannot readily make his defence.
“A question that should bother everyone is this: this book has been out for some time, so why did it take so long to file all these lawsuits? Why did they have to wait until his arrest? Why did they have to wait until his remand? Why did they have to ensure he was kept out of circulation and his voice silenced before raising these issues? Why did they wait until now? Why?”
“Is this how jurisprudence works? Is this how history works? Has jurisprudence developed in this way?
“A man is held in cuffs and at the gallows, yet some of us, in defense of orthodoxy, accuse him of blasphemy instead of demanding justice for all parties involved. They are convicting and crucifying Farotimi without hearing him, even in the home city of Pilate.
“This rain rains in torrents but it shall not rain for long. It shall be temporary. Soon things will unravel. The ground will be dry again”.