JOIN NOW, EARN 50% OF OUR TOTAL REVENUE MONTHLY

ABUJA- The Buhari Campaign Organisation,
BCO, has instituted a N40million libel suit
against the presidential candidate of the
Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku
Abubakar, accusing him of defaming
President Muhammadu Buhari and his
family.
Buhari and Atiku
President Buhari was cited as the 2nd
Plaintiff in the suit that was lodged before
a High Court of the Federal Capital
Territory.
The Plaintiffs are praying the court to
compel the PDP flag-bearer to pay
damages for alleging that President Buhari
and members of his family own substantial
shares in 9mobile and Keystone Bank.
The BCO, in the suit that has Atiku’s aide,
Mr. Phrank Shaibu as the 1st defendant,
insisted that the claim was not only false,
but highly libelous.
The plaintiff is seeking a declaration that
“the 1st Defendant (Phrank Shaibu) on
behalf and for the 2nd Defendant (Atiku)
neglectfully, unlawfully and recklessly
permitted and caused to be published in
Newspapers, defamatory and damaging
statements against the 1st Plaintiff
(President Buhari)”.
The BCO applied for an order of the court
for specific Damages against the
Defendants jointly and severally in the sum
of (N30,000,000.00) Thirty Millions Naira as
the total sum above listed as financial loss
the Plaintiffs incurred due to the wrongful,
neglectful and fraudulent acts of the
Defendants which forced the Plaintiffs to
spend to correct the wrong impression
created in the minds of the members of
the public due to the publication caused
and published by the Defendants.
READ ALSO: Alleged N1.4bn fraud: NBA
President, Usoro arraigned, gets N250m
bail
The plaintiffs also want an order for
“general damages in the sum of
(N10,000,000,00) Ten Million Naira only
jointly and severally against the Defendants
for the embarrassment, pain and
unnecessary financial loss suffered by the
Plaintiffs most particularly the 1st Plaintiff
who is a public figure, an honourable
presidential candidate and reputable
gentleman to the core”.
As well as an order of the court “for the
payment of the sum of (N375,OOO.OO)
Three Hundred and Seventy Five Thousand
Naira only being incidental expenses and/or
legal charges which the 1st Plaintiff
incurred in respect of this matter”.
In a witness statement on oath made by its
Director of Communication and Strategic
Planning, Mallam Gidado Ibrahim, the BCO,
told the court that Atiku and his media aide
engaged in smeared campaign of calumny
against Buhari, by willfully allowing and
sponsoring the said purported defamatory
and image damaging statements made by
the 1st Defendant to be published by some
newspapers to members of the public.
Ibrahim averred that as such, President
Buhari’s reputations was greatly affected
by undue diligence with regards to the
authenticity of the information as it relate
to the true ownership of the alleged
companies which the 1 st Defendant on
behalf and for the 2nd defendant, falsely
published in the newspapers for the
consumption of the general public.
“The 2nd Defendant permitted and
sponsored the 1st Defendant, Mr. Phrank
Shaibu to make and publish defamatory
and damaging statement against the 1st
Plaintiff in order for 2nd Defendant to get
undue advantage in terms of votes from
the member of the public more than the
1st Plaintiff (Buhari), the presidential
candidate of the All Progressives Congress.
“That the 2nd Defendant who is a
Presidential Candidate of the People
Democratic Party hanged on this
publications and using same on every
campaign grounds to smear the person of
the 1st Plaintiff to his supporters and other
members of the public.
“That the 1st Defendant as an agent to the
2nd Defendant who is freely accessible to
members of the public for patronage on
behalf the 2nd Defendant, has the duty to
investigate any information/ documents
means to be issued out either by words of
mouth or publication to the members of
public, most particularly where such
information concerned a third party or any
member of the public .
“That the 1st Defendant without
investigating the authenticity of the
purported defamatory information with
intent to damage the reputation and
integrity of the 1st Plaintiff caused to be
published in the Newspapers. That the
Plaintiffs shall tender two daily newspapers
the Vanguard and Punch Newspapers both
dated 27th December,2018 before the
court during the hearing.
“That the 1st Defendant, to investigate and
to ascertain the true ownership of the
Keystone Bank Plc and 9Mobile Ltd
(EtisaIat) needed only to go to the
Corporate Affairs Commission to find out
whether the said Companies truly belong to
the 1st Plaintiff before publishing that the
Companies were bought and owned by the
1st Plaintiff, his family and friends in the
purported publications.
“That the Defendants having willingly
refused to so do, have failed to exercise
due diligence and were therefore negligent.
“That the 1st Defendant for and on behalf
of the 2nd Defendant negligently caused to
be published defamatory and damaging
statements against the 1st Plaintiff and the
2nd Defendant gave the 1st Defendant and
his cohorts the mandate to use the said
publications against the Plaintiffs all over
the place.
“That the neglectful acts of the Defendants
more particularly that of the 1st Defendant
has caused grave pain, embarrassment and
integrity question to the Plaintiffs more
particularly to the 1st Plaintiff (Buhari)”, he
added.
Source:
www.vanguardngr.com/2019/01/
breaking-buhari-campaign-organization-
slams-n40m-libel-suit-against-atiku/