Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, said that he has represented numerous clients in legal battles for decades and emphasised that his practice does not profit from the misfortunes of others.
In an interview with Sahara TV posted via YouTube on Monday, he further provided a detailed account of his longstanding commitment to defending human rights without financial gain.
“As a policy, we do not collect fees to write letters for pardon. It is not part of our system because we do not profit from the tragedy of people,” he stated.
Falana cited multiple instances from his 42-year legal career where he intervened in cases of alleged injustice without charging a fee. Among these, he referenced his role in securing the release of six Nigerians who had been wrongfully detained in the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.
Despite being pardoned by the Thai government in 2017, the individuals remained incarcerated until my intervention led to their release in 2022.
“I did a letter addressed to the then Minister of Interior….on the day he received the letter, he ordered the authorities of the correction centre, Kirikiri correction Centre to release them, only two of them came here to thank me,” he said.
Falana further emphasised that his practice is driven by a commitment to justice and not financial gain.
“In the last 42 years of my legal practice, I have never ever demanded for a kobo to write a letter of pardon for anybody,” he said.
Falana used the forum to addressed allegations of seeking a pardon for Bobrisky in exchange for N10 million. He described the claims as infantile and ridiculous.
He expressed disappointment over the allegations, sharing that they had caused concern within his family. Despite this, Falana reassured them of his integrity and commitment.
“I told my family that, at the end of the day, I will not disappoint you,” he said.
Earlier, Martins Otse, a.k.a. VeryDarkMan, shared a voice note on social media, in which Idris Okuneye, popularly known as Bobrisky, claimed that after his conviction and sentencing for abuse of the naira notes in April, his godfather, in collaboration with the Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, arranged for him to serve his six-month sentence in a private apartment.
Meanwhile, Falana, who was allegedly implicated in the share voice note, denied any involvement with Bobrisky and gave VeryDarkMan a 24-hour ultimatum to retract the statement he made linking him to Bobrisky.
