The Oyo State Government has withdrawn all charges against Naomi Silekunola, a former wife of the Ooni of Ife; Oriyomi Hamzat, owner of Agidigbo FM; and Abdullahi Fasasi, principal of Islamic High School, Bashorun, Ibadan.
Following the horrific stampede at a children’s festival in December 2024 that killed at least 35 children, the three were first the target of legal action.
The charges had been dropped, as evidenced by the defendants’ obvious relief, smiles, and pleasantries after Thursday’s court appearance.
Abiodun Aikomo, the attorney general of Oyo State, confirmed the event and provided an explanation of the court’s reasoning.
He said,
“It was an unfortunate incident that led to the death of many. And you see, in law, whenever death occurs and the circumstances are not natural, the law will take its course. So the state responded by filing charges against the persons implicated in the investigation.
“In the course of doing that, we actually wanted to prosecute but the affected persons showed empathy. They showed compassion. And as far as human beings can do, they try to persuade the feelings of the affected parties. And the circumstance, we felt, the essence of prosecution is not to kill people or persecute them.
“It is in the interest of justice to discontinue these charges, and that is what happened today. So we withdrew the charge and it was struck out by the court. There is no charge against them again, so they are free.”
