A High Court in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has postponed the libel suit involving former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, and ex-President Muhammadu Buhari’s aide, Lauretta Onochie.
Justice Chizoba Orji adjourned the proceedings due to the absence of Onochie’s lead counsel, U.O. Sule (SAN), prompting Atiku’s legal team to request a N1 million cost.
A lawyer in the firm of Sule, C.O. Ogbodo Esq, had arrived late to the proceeding and pleaded for an adjournment because the senior lawyer in the matter was already out of town in Sokoto for another matter.
Atiku had filed a N2.5 billion suit in December 2019, alleging libel over Onochie’s social media post claiming he was on a security watch list in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for terrorism. The former VP seeks a retraction of the said post and a payment of N500 million compensation to him “To assuage” the damage and embarrassment he suffered as a result of the post.
In his statement of claim, Atiku said that instead of expressing remorse and retracting her initial publication, Onochie proceeded to make another derogatory statement on May 20, disseminating it online through social and print media. Atiku claimed that these publications led to significant embarrassment, public ridicule, marital discord and inflicted mental agony and psychological trauma upon him.
