Activist and lawyer, Dele Farotimi, has declared that his legal battle is far from over, despite the withdrawal of criminal charges against him. Speaking on The Duke Rants podcast, published on YouTube on Saturday, Farotimi revealed that he is still weighing his options after enduring a 21-day incarceration.
When asked what he would say if he met Chief Afe Babalola today, he responded, “Like a good Yoruba boy, I’ll give him his salutations. But that doesn’t change the fact that I’m still considering my options regarding what I went through.”
Pressed further on his next steps, he stated, “Every legal option available to a person who was unlawfully kidnapped from his office and dragged before a magistrate for a non-existent crime is on the table.” He recounted the irregularities surrounding his arrest, highlighting the shocking legal violations committed by law enforcement officers.
“Policemen crossed five state lines, entered a sixth state — from Ekiti to Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Ogun, and then into Lagos. Somebody has to explain the basis of my incarceration for 21 days,” he said.
Farotimi disclosed that although Babalola withdrew his petition in February, he still faces four separate lawsuits filed by members of Babalola’s law office in different states. “Despite the discontinuation of the criminal proceeding, I still have four suits against me in four different states, all from the same law office,” he said.
His legal troubles stemmed from Babalola’s petition to the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, accusing him of defamation over his book, Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System. This led to Farotimi’s arrest and arraignment before an Ekiti State Magistrate Court for alleged criminal defamation and before the Federal High Court in Ado Ekiti for alleged cyber-bullying.
Following interventions by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, and other traditional rulers, Babalola withdrew his cases on January 27. However, Farotimi insists that his fight is far from over.
Defending his book, he maintained that it was based on thorough research and personal experience. “I did not sit down in a beer parlour, I was not gossiping. I wrote a book. Let’s deal with veracity—anyone can read it and challenge me with any lie I have told,” he said.
He dismissed the notion that the controversy was about him personally, insisting that the real issue is Nigeria’s legal system.
“This is not a trial of Dele Farotimi. Let nobody make that error. It is a trial of the legal system we have built as a collective,” he asserted.
Farotimi also clarified that his book was never a personal attack on Babalola or any individual but a critique of systemic corruption in the judiciary. “Chief Afe Babalola is old enough to be my father. I did not set out to destroy him or tarnish his image. Nothing personal. I was writing about the judiciary as an institution,” he concluded.
