- He damanded Farotimi’s unconditional release from illegal custody, stressing that Lagos State government had decriminalized defamation
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has reacted to the arrest of activist and government critic, Dele Farotimi.
Within Nigeria had reported on Tuesday that Farotimi was arrested by the police at his Lagos state office and driven to Ekiti State.
Farotimi’s arrest, according to reports, followed a petition by chief Afe Babalola over the content of his new book.
Speaking on the development, Falana disclose that Farotimi was arrested for alleged criminal libel.
He damanded Farotimi’s unconditional release from illegal custody, stressing that Lagos State government had decriminalized defamation.
In a statement he signed, Falana said: “I just confirmed that Mr Dele Farotimi was arrested in Lagos today for alleged criminal libel. In demanding Mr Farotimi’s unconditional release from illegal custody, I wish to state, without any fear of contradiction, that Lagos State is among the two states in Nigeria that have decriminalised defamation in its entirety.
“In fact, the current state of the law was confirmed by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the case of Aviomoh v Commissioner of Police & Anor. (2021) LPELR-55203(SC), when Helen Ogunwumiju JSC held that “defamation was decriminalised in the Criminal Law of Lagos in 2011 and Edo State Criminal Law Bill 2020.”
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