By Bilesanmi Abayomi
Residents of Kosofe have berated the legal counsel representing four councillors of the Kosofe Legislative Arm, accusing him of downplaying allegations of criminal defamation and diverting attention to political issues.
The criticism followed a letter the lawyer addressed to Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Rotimi Seriki, and his client, Councillor Sulyman Baruwa, who had earlier petitioned some of his colleagues for allegedly branding him a “thief, 419, and scammer.”
Engr. Olusola Emmanuel Adedayo, Publisher of MoschinoBlog, was among the first to react, faulting the counsel for what he described as an attempt to sidestep the crux of the matter.
“The lawyer dodged the main allegation and instead focused on the composition of the 8th Kosofe Legislative Council principal officers. He ought to have addressed the defamation directly,” Adedayo said.
Also weighing in, political analyst Oloye Salami Oluwaseun dismissed the lawyer’s response as a diversionary tactic. He alleged that Councillors Femi Oyesile, Hakeem Odunjirin, Christina, Adebare Olalekan, and others fabricated the claims to frustrate Baruwa’s bid to become House Leader.
Salami advised Baruwa to approach the court to clear his name, stressing that “the court is the hope of the common man.”
Other residents and stakeholders echoed similar sentiments, urging Baruwa to seek legal redress since the G4 councillors had failed to apologise within the seven-day ultimatum issued through his counsel.
Efforts by party leaders, including Kosofe Local Government Chairman, Hon. Moyosore Ogunlewe, to resolve the dispute amicably have so far collapsed. The matter is now expected to proceed to litigation in the coming weeks.
Baruwa Lawyer Letter
G4 Lawmakers’ Counsel Letter
Letter-Femi-Oyeshile-lawyer-1