President Tinubu’s Minister slams N60bn lawsuit against two Journalists, media organisations

The Minister of State for Defense, Bello Matawalle, has dragged two 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 per cent post-judgment interest of the entire judgment sum until fully liquidated.

In the motion on notice filed by Umar Said of Umar and Umar chambers and made available to newsmen, 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 or regarding the plaintiff and his office as per the facts of this suit, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”

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.

”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 ramification in the state.

”That from January 2024, the 3rd to 6th defendants in their respective stations, channels, pages, handles, YouTube and programmes chaired/anchored by the 1st and 2nd Defendants started televising, airing, broadcasting, posting, spreading false, libelous, injurious and defamatory statements, utterances, assertions and allegations against the person, character and reputation of the Plaintiff, presenting and painting him as sponsor of bandits and banditry as well as kidnappers and kidnapping in the North West states of Nigeria, Zamfara State inclusive.

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“That the said stations, channels, pages, handles, Youtube and programmes 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 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.”

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Also, in a concurrent writ of 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 programmes and posting 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 type-written apology to the plaintiff for the said defamation of his person, character and reputation and same apology shall bear and contain a retraction of the said defamatory statements, utterances, allegations, posting and assertions against the Plaintiff and shall be published conspicuously in two newspapers (local and nationwide).”

The suit has since been assigned to Justice Musa Ahmad who slated December ,12 for hearing.

Matawalle’s suit comes shortly after a group within the All Progressives Congress (APC) known as 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 independent investigation into the connections between Bello Matawalle and some armed bandits.

The group maintained in a statement by its chairperson, Musa Mahmud, that only such 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 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.