Judiciary
Magistrate Court Dismisses Defamation Case Against Dele Farotimi In Ekiti
Magistrate Court Dismisses Defamation Case Against Dele Farotimi In Ekiti
Magistrate court dismisses defamation case against Dele Farotimi in Ekiti . The Chief Magistrates’ Court in Ekiti State has struck out the defamation case against human rights lawyer and activist, Dele Farotimi.
The decision followed a motion filed by police prosecutor Martins Akala, seeking to withdraw the case from the court.
According to reports, the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti had earlier dismissed cyberbullying and defamation charges against Farotimi on January 29, 2025, after the police withdrew the charges.
Background of the Case
Farotimi was arraigned by the Ekiti State Police on December 4, 2024, over alleged defamatory statements against legal luminary Afe Babalola in his book Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System. In the book, he accused Babalola of influencing Supreme Court justices.
He was granted bail on December 20, 2024, and the case was scheduled for hearing on February 13, 2025. However, on January 27, 2025, Afe Babalola agreed to withdraw the criminal defamation charges following the intervention of prominent traditional rulers, led by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.
Court Proceedings and Ruling
During Thursday’s hearing, prosecutor Akala informed the court that the authorities had directed the withdrawal of the defamation suit.

Dele Farotimi
“This matter was scheduled for hearing today, but I seek leave of the court to withdraw the charge against the defendant as instructed by the police authorities,” he stated.
In response to the ruling, Farotimi’s counsel, Kembi Adejare, welcomed the decision, saying, “The case was struck out based on the prosecution’s application. They brought us here, and now they’ve asked us to leave.
In open court, I said they put us in chains and have now removed them—why should we complain?”
Crime
Enugu: EFCC Quizzes Trader For Alleged Dealing In Currency Counterfeiting
Enugu: EFCC Quizzes Trader For Alleged Dealing In Currency Counterfeiting
Enugu: EFCC Quizzes Trader for alleged dealing in currency counterfeiting. Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have commenced investigation into the activities of a 31- year old trader, Oduburu Lucy Oluchi also known as Eze Chiamaka Lucy caught with fake currency to the tune of N192, 000. 00 (One Hundred and Ninety-two Thousand Naira).
Oluchi was arrested on December 23, 2025 at Eke Nibo market in Awka South Local Government Area of Anambra State by her fellow traders, while attempting to purchase goods in the market.
Upon her arrest, she was handed over to Agunechemba Quasi Security outfit (Vigilante) who handed her over to the Department of State Services.
Receiving the suspect from the DSS on December 29, 2025, the Commission discovered that she had in her possession fake One Thousand Naira notes totaling the said sum, with six different serial numbers.

EFCC
Twenty-five (25) notes have serial number A/33 334233; Thirty (30) notes have serial number B/33 334432; Fifty-one (51) notes have serial number A/83 353504; Forty-three (43) notes have serial number A/29 894433; Forty-two (42) notes have serial number A/29 894434 while One (1) note has serial number A29/ 898248.
The offence is contrary to Section 151 of the Criminal Code and Sections 4 and 5 of the Counterfeit Currency (Special Provisions) Act.
The suspect will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.
Crime
Nnamdi Kanu Says There’s No Charge Against Him, Refuses To Open Defence
Nnamdi Kanu Says There’s No Charge Against Him, Refuses To Open Defence
Nnamdi Kanu says there’s no charge against him, refuses to open defence. Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has refused to open his defence in the terrorism charge filed against him.
At the resumed proceedings on Monday, Kanu who has opted to defend himself after sacking his team of lawyers, said he has gone through his case file and there is no charge against him.
“Join me in praising God. I have gone through my case file, and there is no charge against me,” he started.

Nnamdi Kanu
“There is no extant law in this country upon which the prosecution can predicate the charges against me. If there’s any, let my Lord read it out to me.
“So, I should not enter any defence in a charge that does not exist under any law in Nigeria. I urge you to release me today or grant me bail.”
Economy
Atiku Slams Tinubu Over ‘Reckless’ Presidential Pardon Says “It Undermines Justice, Emboldens Criminality”
Atiku Slams Tinubu Over ‘Reckless’ Presidential Pardon Says “It Undermines Justice, Emboldens Criminality”
Atiku slams Tinubu over ‘reckless’ presidential pardon says “It undermines justice, emboldens criminality”. Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has criticised President Bola Tinubu for what he described as the “reckless and morally indefensible” use of presidential pardon.
In a statement on Sunday, Abubakar said the latest exercise of clemency by Tinubu “undermines justice and emboldens criminality,” arguing that it betrays the spirit of the constitutional power it is meant to represent.
“The recent announcement of a presidential pardon by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has, as expected, provoked outrage across the nation,” Abubakar said.
“Ordinarily, the power of presidential pardon is a solemn prerogative, a moral and constitutional instrument designed to temper justice with mercy and to underscore the humanity of the state.
“When properly exercised, it elevates justice and strengthens public faith in governance. Regrettably, the latest pardon issued by the Tinubu administration has done the very opposite.”
He said granting clemency to individuals convicted of serious crimes such as drug trafficking, kidnapping, murder, and corruption “not only diminishes the sanctity of justice but also sends a dangerous signal to the public and the international community about the values this government upholds”.
“At a time when Nigeria continues to reel under the weight of insecurity, moral decay, and a surge in drug-related offences, it is both shocking and indefensible that the presidency would prioritise clemency for those whose actions have directly undermined national stability and social order,” he added.
The former vice-president said it is “particularly worrisome” that nearly a third of those pardoned were convicted for drug-related offences.
“Particularly worrisome is the revelation that 29.2 percent of those pardoned were convicted for drug-related crimes at a time when our youth are being destroyed by narcotics, and our nation is still struggling to cleanse its image from the global stain of drug offences,” he said.
“Even more disturbing is the moral irony that this act of clemency is coming from a president whose own past remains clouded by unresolved and unexplained issues relating to the forfeiture of thousands of dollars to the United States government over drug-related investigations.
“It is, therefore, no surprise that this administration continues to demonstrate a worrying tolerance for individuals associated with criminal enterprise.”
According to him, a presidential pardon is meant to symbolise “restitution and moral reform,” but Tinubu’s action “has become a mockery of the criminal justice system, an affront to victims, a demoralisation of law enforcement, and a grave injury to the conscience of the nation.”
“Clemency must never be confused with complicity,” Atiku said, adding that “when a government begins to absolve offenders of the very crimes it claims to be fighting, it erodes the moral authority of leadership and emboldens lawlessness,” the former vice-president.
“Nigeria deserves a leadership that upholds justice, not one that trivialises it.”

Tinubu, Atiku
Recently, 175 persons received a presidential pardon following the approval of the national council of state.
Among the 175 beneficiaries are Herbert Macaulay, one of Nigeria’s foremost nationalists; Farouk Lawan, a former member of the house of representatives; Mamman Vatsa, a major general and poet executed in 1986 over alleged treason; and Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death for killing her husband in 2017.
Drug offenders, illegal miners, white-collar convicts, and foreigners are also among the recipients of the presidential pardon.
In a statement on Saturday, Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, said Tinubu granted clemency to most of the convicts based on reports that they had shown remorse and good conduct.
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