A High Court sitting in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, has ordered a legal practitioner, Igbo Michael Inya, to pay fifty million naira (N50,000,000.00) as general damages to the former Governor of the state and Minister of Works, David Umahi, for a defamatory publication.
The legal practitioner was accused in suit number HAB/183/2021 of making a defamatory post against Umahi on the UNEC Law 01 WhatsApp platform on the 13th, 14th, and 16th of January 2021, accusing him of sponsoring the construction of the Port Harcourt branch of his hotel from the state purse.
Umahi, who dragged the defendant to court for redress, sought the following reliefs: ‘An order of this court compelling the Defendant to issue a retraction of all the defamatory publications against the Plaintiff made in UNEC Law 01 WhatsApp platform on 13th, 14th and 16th of January 2021.
“An order of the court to the Defendant to issue a written apology to the Plaintiff in the following manner: three online social media WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram.
“Publish the same for two weeks (running twice daily) on that same UNEC platform. A retraction and apology to the Plaintiff on two national daily newspapers. An order of the court to the Defendant to pay one hundred million naira as damages and special damages for defamation, among many other reliefs.”
The defendant, on his part, held that the said defamatory WhatsApp posts were fair comments on a matter of public interest and the same was made as a concerned indigene of Ebonyi State desirous of good governance in his state, and that it did not amount to defamation.
Delivering judgement on the matter, the trial judge, Justice Chinyere Ken-Ezeh, found the defendant guilty of defaming the plaintiff and granted payment of fifty million naira (N50,000,000.00) damages by the defendant to the plaintiff.
“With all due respect to the Plaintiff these reliefs appear extravagant, sounds more in speculation than in law and largely incapable of practical enforcement. Courts of law are institutions for the vindication of legal rights and not arenas for ceremonial humiliation of litigants.
“The evidence before this court establishes that the defendant is a legal practitioner duly called to the Nigerian Bar. It is both troubling and disheartening to observe that a legal Practitioner, one who is sworn to uphold the noblest tradition of the profession condescend into the arena of defamation.
“It must be emphasised that the robe of advocacy does not grant a license for restlessness. Accordingly, it is imperative to Counsel members of the Bar to desist from engaging in defamatory conducts.
“The extravagant reliefs sought by the Plaintiff in respect to apology and retraction are refused for being unreasonable and incapable of practical enforcement. Accordingly, the judgment is hereby entered in favour of the plaintiff as follows:
“The defendant is to pay the sum of fifty million naira (N50,000,000.00) as damages for defamatory publication against the plaintiff.
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“The defendant shall publish a retraction and apology to the plaintiff in the same medium the defamatory publications were made within 14 days from date of this judgment.
“An order of perpetual injunction is hereby granted restraining the defendant, servants or privies or agents from further publishing or causing to publish the said defamatory statement concerning the Plaintiff.
“Parties are to bear the cost of prosecuting this suit,” the court ruled.
