National News Special Report
LAURETTA ONOCHIE IN TROUBLE AS ATIKU FILES N2.5BN LIBEL SUIT AGAINST HER
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Afnews Editor
Jun 30, 2019
A former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has carried
out his threat to sue President Muhammadu Buhari's Special Assistant on Social
Media, Lauretta Onochie, for her alleged libellous tweet via her Twitter handle
on May 7, 2019.
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The post allegedly suggested that Atiku was on the watch
list of security operatives in the United Arab Emirates and had travelled to
shop for terrorists in the Middle East.
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Atiku, through his lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), filed
a N2.5bn suit against Onochie before the High Court of the Federal Capital
Territory in Abuja on June 26.
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"To say that the claimant is shopping for terrorists knowing
same to be untrue and without any foundation is not only dishonest and
reckless, but is calculated and politically designed to instigate security
agents against him not only in the UAE, but across the world,ÔÇØ he stated in his
statement of claim accompanying the suit.
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Denying the allegations contained in the said tweet, Atiku
said the tweet was "politically orchestratedÔÇØ "solely to cause maximum damageÔÇØ
to his "high reputationÔÇØ while challenging "the purported victoryÔÇØ of Onochie's boss, President Buhari in the last
presidential election at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.
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The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party
in the February 23, 2019 poll had in a May 14, 2019 letter, demanded an apology, retraction and payment
of N500m compensation from Onochie "to assuageÔÇØ the damage allegedly caused him
by her social media post.
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He also threatened to sue her should she fail to accede to
the demand "within 48 hoursÔÇØ.
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Alleging that Onochie was unmoved by his demand letter,
Atiku, in his statement of claim accompanying his suit, stated that rather than
show "remorse by retracting her earlier publicationÔÇØ, she further, on May 20,
made "another derogatory publication and also published same globally online in
the social and other print mediaÔÇØ against his person.
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He said sometimes in May this year, he had embarked on a foreign trip to the UAE as he
had done over the years, and while on the said trip, Onochie on May 7, 2019, wrote, through her twitter
handle:
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"Atiku on UAE watchlist- Security sources Security
operatives in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are keeping a close tab on a
former Nigerian Vice Pres Atiku Abubakar who has been in the Middle East nation
for several weeks now What is he doing there? Me: Shopping for Terrorists?ÔÇØ
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The claimant said
"the defamatory publicationÔÇØ was also published by several newspapers
nationwide and on several social media news.
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He denied the
allegations contained in the said publication which he described as "a figment
of the imagination of the defendantÔÇØ, but said it portrayed him "as an evil
man, mentor of terrorists, someone who has links with terrorists, and a person
who is interested in destabilising the peace and unity of NigeriaÔÇØ.
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"The publication also portrayed the claimant as a security
threat and terrorist to right thinking members of the public and the society at
large,ÔÇØ the former Vice-President added.
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He noted that "the odious publication has clearly rubbished the claimant's image and reputation. It has caused him national and international backlash and embarrassment and has done incalculable damage to him.
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