Igboho sues Gani Adams for defamation, demands N500m damages

The crisis between Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, and the Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, a.k.a. Sunday Igboho, got messier as the former filed a lawsuit against Adams at the Oyo State High Court, demanding N500m as damages.

Adeyemo, in the suit marked I/406/2024, is asking the court to grant an order directing the defendant to engage all new media platforms, including YouTube, to take down the slanderous, libelous, and defamatory content against him.

In the suit, the agitator also wants the court to declare that the content of an audio clip between the defendant and a third party named Nuru Banjo that took place sometime in November 2021 is slanderous, libelous, and defamatory.

Also included in the case is an order directing the defendant to tender an unreserved apology to the claimant in five national newspapers in Nigeria over defamatory content against the claimant by the defendant, which has been published on all new media platforms, including YouTube.

“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendant, his agent, privies, or assigns from further embarrassing degrading or defaming the person of the claimant.

“An order of this court for the payment of exemplary and aggravated damages in the sum of N500m in favour of the claimant for defamation of the person of the claimant by the defendant. Cost of litigation put at the sum of N10m.

“Of this court directing the defendant to publicly retract the slanderous, libelous, and defamatory content contained in the publication to Nuru Banjo, which was further published on all new media platforms where the claimant was defamed, maligned, and disparaged by the defendant in the conversation published in November 2021 by the defendant.”

“A declaration that it is unlawful, inappropriate, and inexcusable for the defendant to defame, disparage, and put to disrepute the character and reputation of the claimant in an audio clip published on all new media platforms, including Youtube, in a publication that took place between the defendant and a third party, Nuru Banjo, sometime in November 2021 or thereabout.”

Among other prayers of the claimant is that the court should declare as complete falsehood an allegation linking him to the murder of a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, late Bola Ige, who was killed by gunmen at his Bodija residence, Ibadan, on December 23, 2001.