Alleged defamation: Matawalle sues journalists, media outfits for ₦60b in damages
The Minister of State for Defense, Bello Muhammad Matawalle, has dragged two prominent northern journalists, Shu’aibu Mungadi and Tijjani Ramalan, to court for alleged defamation and malicious reportage.
Other respondents in the suit marked K/M2102/2024 before Justice Musa Ahmad of Kano State High Court, Bichi Division, include the employers of the two journalists, Vision Media Services Ltd, Vision FM, Farin Wata Television, and Liberty Radio and TV.
He is also asking for N10 billion compensation as general damages from each of the six defendants in addition to 10 percent post-judgment interest on the entire judgement sum until fully liquidated.
In the motion on notice filed by Umar Said of Umar and Umar Chambers, the Minister of State is praying for “an order of interlocutory injunction restraining all the defendants, their officers, staff, agents, servants, and employees from making further instigation, insinuation, airing, broadcasting, posting, uploading, transmitting, televising, in whatever form, any issue concerning, relating to, or regarding the plaintiff and his office as per the facts of this suit, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”
Further, in an affidavit in support of the motion for interlocutory injunction sworn to by Alhaji Masudu Abdulkadir, the personal assistant to the Minister, the plaintiff averred as follows:
“That the plaintiff/applicant was the chief security officer and the executive governor of Zamfara State for four years, and that during his tenure in office as the executive governor, as well as chief security officer of the state, he tried and strived vigorously to tackle insecurity in all its ramifications in the state.
“That from January 2024, the 3rd to 6th defendants in their respective stations, channels, pages, handles, YouTube, and programs chaired/anchored by the 1st and 2nd Defendants started televising, airing, broadcasting, posting, and spreading false, libellous, injurious, and defamatory statements, utterances, assertions, and allegations against the person, character, and reputation of the Plaintiff, presenting and painting him as a sponsor of bandits and banditry as well as kidnappers and kidnapping in the North West states of Nigeria, Zamfara State included.
“That the said stations, channels, pages, handles, YouTube, and programs of the 3rd to 6th Defendants anchored/chaired by the 1st and 2nd Defendants cut across the said North West states and are being tuned, listened to, and viewed by the innocent, good populous people of those states, including Kano State as well as the entire world in respect of the online stations, channels, and pages of the Defendants.”
While undertaking that the plaintiff will pay damages in the event that the substantive suit turns out to be frivolous, the deponent contended that “unless restrained pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit, the Defendants will continue injuring and assassinating the character and reputation of the plaintiff.”
Also, in a concurrent writ summons, the plaintiff’s counsel prayed the court for “a declaration that the allegations, statements, utterances, and assertions made by the defendants repeatedly against the plaintiff at their various programs and postings from January 2024 to date, aired, televised, posted, and broadcast by them at their respective stations, channels, handles, and YouTubes as per the facts of this suit constitute defamation of the plaintiff and his person, character, and reputation.”
Other reliefs sought by the Plaintiff include: “An order of perpetual injunction, restraining the defendants, their agents, assigns, or proxies, among others, in whatever name or description, acting on their behalf, instruction, or instance from further defaming the person of the Plaintiff and his reputation.
“An order of the court directing the defendants to tender a typewritten apology to the plaintiff for the said defamation of his person, character, and reputation, and the same apology shall bear and contain a retraction of the said defamatory statements, utterances, allegations, postings, and assertions against the Plaintiff and shall be published conspicuously as part of two newspapers (local and nationwide).”
The matter has been adjourned to December 12, 2024, for hearing.
Matawalle’s suit comes shortly after a group within the All Progressives Congress (APC) known as the Akida Forum, called for a thorough investigation of the Minister of State over the rising insecurity in Northwest States.
The group, which protested at the headquarters of the Department of State Services (DSS), urged the service to conduct an independent investigation into the connections between Bello Matawalle and some armed bandits.
In a statement, its chairperson, Musa Mahmud, maintained that only such an independent investigation would save millions of Nigerians from further trauma, safeguard the integrity of President Bola Tinubu, and security agencies.
A similar call was made by the Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal, who urged Mr. Matawalle to resign from his ministerial position to clear his name, even as he alleged that the former governor was keeping terrorists at the Government House.
While alleging that ransom was paid to terrorists through the government, Governor Lawal disclosed that he had “formally reported the minister to the National Security Adviser and President Tinubu and presented some facts to them.”
Meanwhile, the suit has since been assigned to Justice Musa Ahmad, who at the last sitting adjourned the matter to December 12.
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