Human rights and anti corruption lawyer, Femi Falana SAN on Sunday, December 15 denied his involvement on a planned protest against Chief Afe Babalola SAN over the Dele Farotimi defamation issue which is presently in court.
An Ado-Ekiti Chief, Chief Mike Oshaloni had allegedly linked Falana to the planned protest but Falana denied involvement, asking the protest planners to count him out. In a statement he released on Sunday afternoon, Falana said his involvement is a figment of Oshaloni’s imagination.
The statement reads:
My attention has just been drawn to a highly misleading statement credited to High Chief Mike Oshaloni, the Oloti of Ado Ekiti and the Head of the Afe Babalola Family wherein he claimed, albeit falsely, that I am involved in a planned protest against Aare Afe Babalola SAN in Ado, Ekiti State.
Even though the baseless allegation is a figment of the fertile imagination of Chief Oshaloni, I wish to state, without any fear of contradiction, that I am not involved in any plan to protest against Aare Afe Babalola SAN in respect of a matter that is pending in a court of law.
It is public knowledge that for over four decades, I have led or taken part in peaceful rallies under successive regimes in Nigeria to protest against human rights abuse, social injustice, economic hardship, insecurity and oppression of the Nigerian people. It is on record that I have never participated in any protest in the company of Mr. Dele Farotimi, contrary to the jejune assertion of Chief Oshaloni.
Notwithstanding my well known campaign for the decriminalization of free speech in Africa, I did not challenge Aare Afe Babalola SAN for taking any action deemed fit by him to defend his hard earned reputation. To that extent, I urge the members of the public to ignore the reckless allegations of Chief Oshaloni in respect of a protest that I know nothing about.
Femi Falana SAN.
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