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The Minister of State for Protection, Bello Matawalle, has sued two distinguished northern journalists, Shu’aibu Mungadi and Tijjani Ramalan, for alleged defamation and malicious reportage.
The previous governor, within the swimsuit marked Okay/M2102/2024, dated October 25 and sighted by our correspondent on Sunday, is in search of N10bn usually damages in his favour towards every of the six defendants along with 10 per cent post-judgment curiosity of your entire judgment sum till totally liquidated.
Different defendants within the swimsuit are the employers of the 2 journalists, Imaginative and prescient Media Providers Ltd, Imaginative and prescient FM, Farin Wata Tv and Liberty Radio and TV.
The plaintiff in an affidavit in assist of the movement for interlocutory injunction sworn to by Alhaji Masudu Abdulkadir, the private assistant to the Minister, he claimed that the defendants by means of their media platform, anchored by the first and 2nd defendants, made utterances and assertions that the character of the plaintiff portray and alleging him as a sponsor of bandits.
The deponent deposed saying “That the plaintiff/applicant was the chief safety officer and the chief governor of Zamfara State for 4 years and that in his tenure in workplace as the chief governor in addition to chief safety officer of the state, he tried and strived vigorously to deal with insecurity in all its ramification within the state.
“That from January 2024, the third to sixth defendants of their respective stations, channels, pages, handles, YouTube and programmes chaired/anchored by the first and 2nd defendants began televising, airing, broadcasting, posting, spreading false, libelous, injurious and defamatory statements, utterances, assertions and allegations towards the individual, character and fame of the plaintiff, presenting and portray him as sponsor of bandits and banditry in addition to kidnappers and kidnapping within the North-West states of Nigeria, Zamfara State inclusive.
“That the mentioned stations, channels, pages, handles, Youtube and programmes of the third to sixth defendants anchored/chaired by the first and 2nd defendants reduce throughout the mentioned North-West states and are being tuned, listened and seen by the harmless good populous individuals of these states, together with Kano State in addition to your entire world in respect of the net stations, channels and pages of the defendants.”
Whereas endeavor that the plaintiff pays damages within the occasion that the substantive swimsuit seems to be frivolous, the deponent contended that “except restrained pending the listening to and dedication of the substantive swimsuit, the defendants will proceed injuring and assassinating the character and fame of the plaintiff.”
Within the movement on discover filed by Umar Stated of Umar and Umar chambers, which is earlier than Justice Musa Ahmad of Kano State Excessive Court docket, Bichi Division, Matawalle is praying the courtroom for “an order of interlocutory injunction restraining all of the defendants, their officers, employees, brokers, servants and staff from making additional instigation, insinuation airing, broadcasting, posting, importing, transmitting, televising in no matter type any concern regarding, relating or concerning the plaintiff and his workplace as per the details of this swimsuit, pending the listening to and dedication of the substantive swimsuit.”
Additionally, in a concurrent writ of summons, the plaintiff’s counsel prayed the courtroom for “a declaration that the allegations, statements, utterances and assertions made by the defendants repeatedly towards the plaintiff at their varied programmes and posting from January 2024 so far, aired, televised, posted and broadcast by them at their respective stations, channels, handles and YouTubes as per the details of this swimsuit represent defamation of the plaintiff and his individual, character and fame.”
Different reliefs sought by the plaintiff embody, “An order of perpetual injunction, restraining the defendants, their brokers, assigns or proxies amongst others in no matter title or description appearing on their behalf, instruction or occasion from additional defaming the individual of the plaintiff and his fame.
“An order of the courtroom directing the defendants to tender type-written apology to the plaintiff for the mentioned defamation of his individual, character and fame and similar apology shall bear and include a retraction of the mentioned defamatory statements, utterances, allegations, posting and assertions towards the plaintiff and shall be printed conspicuously a part of two newspapers (native and nationwide).”
The courtroom has fastened m December 12, 2024 for listening to.
Matawalle’s swimsuit comes shortly after a bunch throughout the All Progressives Congress often called Akida Discussion board, known as for a radical investigation of the minister of state over the rising insecurity in North-West states.
The group, which protested on the headquarters of the Division of State Providers, urged the safety company to conduct an unbiased investigation into the alleged connection between Matawalle and a few bandits.
An analogous comparable name was made by the Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, who urged Matawalle to resign from his ministerial place to clear his title.
Lawal additionally mentioned he had “formally reported the minister to the Nationwide Safety Adviser and President Tinubu and offered some details to them.”
However Matawalle has repeatedly denied all of the allegations of his hyperlinks with bandits.
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