By Sodiq Adelakun
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has denied allegations of involvement in the case of crossdresser, Bobrisky, and has threatened civil action to restore his reputation.
Falana’s denial comes after social media critic, Martins Otse, known as VeryDarkMan, accused him of seeking a presidential pardon for Bobrisky in exchange for N10 million.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Falana said while he will not file a criminal complaint, he will embark on civil proceedings to restore the integrity of his name and that of his son.
VeryDarkMan also alleged that Falana’s son, Folarin, also known as Falz, was involved in the bribery scandal.
“Bobrisky never spoke to me, I have never met him, I don’t know him from Adam. He was alleged to have spoken to my son, Folarin, Falz.
“My son said this guy was appealing to him for assistance, and called my son, please, can you give me N3 million to be placed in a special part of the prison, we call it VIP section, and my son asked him, are you calling me under the authorization of the superintendent of prisons, he said no, please don’t call me again.
“I’m unable to assist you to bribe the prison authorities, and please be careful since you are already in jail for an offence, and if you are going to call me next time, you can either do it through the superintendent or write a letter endorsed by the prison authorities, and that was the last,” Falana said.
“Somebody now said that he listened to a tape somewhere and went out to lampoon however defame me. My son has never negotiated a bribe on behalf of anybody. On the contrary, my three children normally refer people who need assistance to me.
“I have resisted the temptation to file a criminal complaint because I am leading a team of lawyers in West Africa, campaigning for decriminalisation of freedom of expression.
“In this case, we are not going to file a criminal complaint, we won’t be pushed to do that. What we will do is embark on civil proceedings with a view to restoring our integrity, my own name and that of my son,” Falana added.
VeryDarkMan had earlier apologised for his derogatory innuendos against Falana.