Saraki To Appeal Kwara High Court Ruling On Jurisdiction In Free Speech Case

Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has announced plans to appeal the ruling of a Kwara State High Court which dismissed his objection challenging the court’s jurisdiction to hear a criminal defamation and cyberbullying case instituted against him by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday by Abdulganiyu Abdulqadir, Press Officer on Local Matters at the Abubakar Bukola Saraki Media Office.

The case came up before Justice M. O. Folorunso at the Kwara State High Court in Ilorin on Tuesday, despite the absence of Saraki’s lead counsel, Jimoh Mumini (SAN), who was said to be indisposed.

During the proceedings, the court declined the prosecution’s request to issue a bench warrant against the former Senate President. However, it also rejected the defence’s preliminary objection challenging the court’s jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

Justice Folorunso subsequently adjourned the case until July 22.

According to the statement, Saraki’s legal team maintained that the issue of jurisdiction was fundamental and ought to be determined before the substantive case proceeds.

The statement said the lawyers had advised the former Senate President to challenge the ruling at the Court of Appeal, arguing that “jurisdiction goes to the root of the matter.

“Dr Saraki has subsequently mandated his lawyers to immediately activate the appeal process and ensure the processes are fully filed before the adjourned date fixed by the trial court,” the statement read.

The suit stemmed from a social media post made by Saraki on April 17, 2026, in response to an earlier statement issued by the Kwara State Government, which he said attacked his reputation.

Governor AbdulRazaq’s administration subsequently accused Saraki of criminal defamation and cyberbullying, alleging that his comments questioning the governor’s educational qualifications were capable of causing a breakdown of public peace in the state.

At an earlier hearing on June 17, the prosecution had urged the court to compel Saraki’s appearance through a bench warrant.

However, Saraki’s lawyers argued that the court processes were improperly filed, that the Kwara State High Court lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter, and that the Facebook and X posts in question were protected under the constitutional right to freedom of expression and constituted a legitimate response by the leader of the opposition to the governor’s political party.

Reaffirming his confidence in the judiciary, Saraki said he remained committed to pursuing all available legal avenues.

“Dr Saraki once again reiterates his confidence in the Nigerian judiciary and its ability to do justice to all parties, in all cases and situations. It is the reason why he has mandated his lawyers to always ensure that his position on all issues is strongly defended and justifiably put forward before the court on all matters, including this present case arising from a social media post,” the statement said.

The former Senate President also appealed to his supporters in Kwara State and across the country to remain peaceful and law-abiding as the legal process continues.

He further insisted that he would not be deterred from speaking on issues of public interest despite what he described as attempts by the state government to silence him.

“Dr Saraki also restates his appeal to his supporters across Kwara State and beyond to remain calm and law-abiding. The former Senate President will also want to assure all his supporters and members of the public that he will continue to lend his voice to issues of public and national interest, in spite of the machinations by the outgoing Kwara State government to silence him,” the statement added.

Saraki also repeated his criticism of the AbdulRazaq administration, saying, “Mr Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq’s oppressive tendencies are mere inconveniences that will soon blow away. This is because the administration has only 10 months to stay in office, and the tendency that it represents will be totally eradicated in Kwara State by the people.”