A suspended member of the Edo State House of Assembly, Mr. Emmankhu Isibor Addeh has dragged the speaker of Edo State House of Assembly, Mr. Blessing Agbebaku and seven media houses to the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Abuja for libel and the alleged broadcast of the said libel by Mr. Agbebaku.
In the suit, marked No. FCT/HC/CV/2856/2024, Mr. Blessing Agbebaku and the seven media houses are listed as the first to eight defendants respectively.
According to the writ of summons by Mr. Nnaemeka Okeke and dated June 19, 2024, the lawmakers, a legal practitioner and a devout Christian accused the defendants, jointly and severally, in libel for the broadcast the first defendant made on May 6, 2024 during the plenary of the Edo State House of Assembly, and the re-broadcast and publication by the second to eight defendants on print, electronic, and online media on May 7, 2024 and other various dates.
He said that the defendants broadcast the said false and libelous statement wherein they said that the claimant with two other persons brought a herbalist into the House of Assembly premises to plant some charms in the premises by 1 am in the morning.
He alleged that the libelous statement was published in the said House of Assembly of Edo State and equally published to the whole digital world, including the Federal Capital Territory, by the news media available in Nigeria, whose duty is to report parliamentary proceedings in the Edo State House of Assembly.
The lawmaker further claimed that the first defendant’s broadcast and the re-broadcast and publications by the second to eight defendants have damaged severally the reputation of the claimant in the eyes of his learned colleagues, his co-parishioners, church members, clientele, his constituents, etc.
Mr. Addeh, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who presently represents Esan North -East 1 Constituency in the Edo State House of Assembly is among others demanding from the defendants:
“An Order mandating the 1st Defendant to immediately publish in five print media and five Online media of 1st Defendant’s retraction of the defamatory statement together with an unqualified apology.
“An Order mandating the second to eight defendants to immediately publish a retraction of the said defamatory publications and broadcasts in their respective media.
“Damages of N3, 000,000,000 (Three Billion Naira) against the defendants, jointly and severally.
“N50, 000,000 being the cost of this suit and 10% interest on the damages from the date of judgement until judgement debt is fully paid”.
No date has been fixed for hearing.