Atiku: Farotimi Arrested for Speaking Truth, Groups Condemn Police Treatment

•Condemn bringing him to court in handcuffs

•Want all charges dropped, released

•Police oppose appearance of SAN, Farotimi sent back to prison, supporters clash in court

Chuks Okocha, Linus Aleke in Abuja, Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City, Segun James in Lagos and Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has again stepped into the Dele Farotimi detention matter, saying he was arrested for constantly speaking the truth.

He however, condemned it as a violation of his fundamental rights and a troubling indication of the growing climate of repression in Nigeria.

This was as many civil society groups have condemned the detention of the lawyer and activist, particularly his appearance in court yesterday in handcuffs.

While some of the CSOs have asked that the police should drop all the charges against Farotimi, others have demanded his un conditional release from detention, especially in the spirit of the international human rights day.

In a statement commemorating International Human Rights Day, Atiku criticised the circumstances surrounding Farotimi’s incarceration, highlighting that he was being prosecuted under a cyberbullying law, which according to Atiku, did not exist in Ekiti State.

The former vice-president, therefore, concluded that the detained lawyer and human rights activist was arrested for consistently speaking the truth.

”Farotimi, a lawyer and tireless advocate for human rights, now languishes in prison custody not for any crime but for the supposed ‘crime’ of persistently speaking truth to power.

”His only offence lies in his unflinching commitment to exposing the truths that the government and its collaborators would rather remain hidden. More troubling still is the fact that he is detained and prosecuted under the guise of a law that does not even exist in Ekiti State.

”His plight serves as a poignant reflection of the pervasive climate of impunity and the blatant violation of citizens’ rights that has become all too common in Nigeria.

”Yet, perhaps the most alarming of all is the weaponisation of the cyberbullying law, which is being used as a tool to harass, intimidate, and silence dissenting voices in the opposition and the press.

”On this solemn occasion of International Human Rights Day, let us take a moment to remind our leaders at every level of government to honour the oaths they have sworn to protect and uphold the constitutionally enshrined rights of the people.

“Only through this commitment can we hope to nurture and strengthen our democracy,” Atiku stated

Also, the Human rights writers association (HURIWA), has condemned the police for bringing the detained activist in court in handcuffs.

According to it, “This incident underscores the urgent need for systemic reforms to prevent the misuse of police powers and the criminalisation of civil disputes.”

In a statement by the National coordinator of the group, Emmanuel Onwubiko, “We call on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and other professional bodies to speak out against this injustice and ensure that the rule of law prevails.”

A consortium of civil society organisations, yesterday asked the police to immediately drop their charges against Farotimi, and immediately release him unconditionally.

A statement jointly signed by Global Rights, Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Amnesty International, CLEEN Foundation, BudgIT, amongst several others, called on the Attorney General of Ekiti State to step in immediately to officially discontinue the case against Farotimi if the police did not act fast enough in doing so.

The CSOs further requested that all laws that support criminal defamation in Nigeria’s criminal jurisprudence should be immediately repealed and cases initiated under those laws be struck out by the courts.

The CSOs urged the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun to issue a force-wide order directing the police to cease effecting arrests premised on defamation.

On their part, Network of Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria (NOCSON) and Ijaw Youth Forum, have also demanded immediate release of  Farotimi

Speaking at a rally to mark the World Human Rights Day, Secretary General of NOCSON, Ogbidi Emmanuel, said the rally was to demand immediate release of Faromtimi, whom he said had a right to freedom of expression as  enshrined in the Nigerian constitution.

Ogbidi also regretted the death of former Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Kaduna Eboigbodin, who died two weeks ago over alleged harassment by the police.

Similarly, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), have equally called on President Bola Tinubu to ensure a conducive atmosphere for the practice to grow.

They also called for the release of Farotimi and other journalists in detention, saying intimidation and harassment of journalists and human rights activists must stop immediately.

The two bodies, who made the call during a press conference on ‘Overcoming Challenges to Human Rights and Media Freedom in Nigeria,’ to mark International Human Rights Day at Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, lamented that, “In comparison to the previous year, the press attackers between the first and third quarter of 2024 have surpassed that of the entire year in 2023.”

The event, jointly organised by SERAP and NGE, and supported by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), brought together media executives, civil society organizations, human rights activists and key ministries, departments and agencies of government.

The statement by the Deputy Director of SERAP, Kolawole Oluwadare and General Secretary of NGE, Dr Iyobosa Uwugiaren, condemned attack under present administration.

“According to the Center for Journalism Innovation and Development, press attackers have been verified to be 110 attacks in the year 2024.

“Somebody may just be tried in Sokoto for something and because you want to intimidate that journalist, you will file almost about one video suit against him, maybe in Lagos.

“You are suing the person who posted your case, it’s okay.  So anytime the case is coming up, the person will have to spend money to come to Lagos to defend himself.

“So, this is one of the strategies that some governments, agencies, or non-state actors are using to harass and intimidate journalists.”

Police Oppose Appearance of SAN, Farotimi Sent Back to Prison, Supporters Clash in Court

Meanwhile, Farotimi, was yesterday, sent back to jail.

The development came after the ruling on his bail application was adjourned till December 20, 2024.

The lawyer and human rights activist, had appeared before the Chief Magistrate Court in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, for a bail hearing.

Farotimi, who arrived at the court in a police security van at approximately 10:00 am, was accompanied by officials from the correctional centre.

Appearing before the court, the police prosecutor Samson Osobu, amended the charge against the defendant and objected the bail application on the excuse that Farotimi would jump bail.

Though counsel to the defendant argued that his client was presumed innocent until proven guilty, adding that the case before the court was bailable, the presiding judge, Magistrate Abayomi Adeosun, who argued that the application was incompetent and irregular ordered that Farotimi be remanded in prison custody and adjourned till December 20.

Earlier, Osobu had informed the court that the SAN under the law could not take  over the suit for the defendant at the Magistrate Court.

He cited the recent judgement of a court of Appeal in Ibadan, Oyo State delivered July 16, 2024, where the court ruled that SAN could not appear before the magistrate court.

But in his submission, Olumide-Fasuka explained that the Ekiti state magistrate court law enacted by the House of Assembly allowed lawyers irrespective of status and title to appear in the court especially in criminal matters as it related with the suit against the defendant.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria urged the court to reject argument of prosecuting lawyer, noting that the verdict he cited might not have put into considerations all magistrate court laws across the country.