Matawalle sues journalists over banditry allegations, seeks ₦60bn in damages
By Jeffrey Agbo
Minister of State for Defense, Bello Matawalle, has filed a defamation lawsuit against northern journalists Shu’aibu Mungadi and Tijjani Ramalan over alleged malicious reporting concerning banditry.
The former governor, in a case marked K/M2102/2024 and dated October 25, is demanding ₦10 billion in general damages from each of the six defendants, amounting to ₦60 billion in total. He is also seeking an additional 10% post-judgment interest on the full judgment sum until payment is completed.
Other parties named in the suit include the employers of the journalists: Vision Media Services Ltd, Vision FM, Farin Wata Television, and Liberty Radio and TV.
The plaintiff in an affidavit in support of the motion for interlocutory injunction sworn to by Masudu Abdulkadir, the personal assistant to the Minister, he claimed that the defendants through their media platform, anchored by the 1st and 2nd defendants, made utterances and assertions that the character of the plaintiff painting and alleging him as a sponsor of bandits.
The deponent deposed saying “That the plaintiff/applicant was the chief security officer and the executive governor of Zamfara State for four years and that during his tenure in office as the executive governor as well as chief security officer of the state, he tried and strived vigorously to tackle insecurity in all its ramification in the state.
“That from January 2024, the 3rd to 6th defendants in their respective stations, channels, pages, handles, YouTube and programmes chaired/anchored by the 1st and 2nd defendants started televising, airing, broadcasting, posting, spreading false, libelous, injurious and defamatory statements, utterances, assertions and allegations against the person, character and reputation of the plaintiff, presenting and painting him as sponsor of bandits and banditry as well as kidnappers and kidnapping in the North-West states of Nigeria, Zamfara State inclusive.
“That the said stations, channels, pages, handles, Youtube and programmes of the 3rd to 6th defendants anchored/chaired by the 1st and 2nd defendants cut across the said North-West states and are being tuned, listened and viewed by the innocent good populous people of those states, including Kano State as well as the entire world in respect of the online stations, channels and pages of the defendants.”
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While undertaking that the plaintiff will pay damages in the event that the substantive suit turns out to be frivolous, the deponent contended that “unless restrained pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit, the defendants will continue injuring and assassinating the character and reputation of the plaintiff.”
In the motion on notice filed by Umar Said of Umar and Umar chambers, which is before Justice Musa Ahmad of Kano State High Court, Bichi Division, Matawalle is praying the court for “an order of interlocutory injunction restraining all the defendants, their officers, staff, agents, servants and employees from making further instigation, insinuation airing, broadcasting, posting, uploading, transmitting, televising in whatever form any issue concerning, relating or regarding the plaintiff and his office as per the facts of this suit, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”
Also, in a concurrent writ of summons, the plaintiff’s counsel prayed the court for “a declaration that the allegations, statements, utterances and assertions made by the defendants repeatedly against the plaintiff at their various programmes and posting from January 2024 to date, aired, televised, posted and broadcast by them at their respective stations, channels, handles and YouTubes as per the facts of this suit constitute defamation of the plaintiff and his person, character and reputation.”
Other reliefs sought by the plaintiff include, “An order of perpetual injunction, restraining the defendants, their agents, assigns or proxies among others in whatever name or description acting on their behalf, instruction or instance from further defaming the person of the plaintiff and his reputation.
“An order of the court directing the defendants to tender type-written apology to the plaintiff for the said defamation of his person, character and reputation and same apology shall bear and contain a retraction of the said defamatory statements, utterances, allegations, posting and assertions against the plaintiff and shall be published conspicuously part of two newspapers (local and nationwide).”
The court has fixed December 12, 2024 for hearing.
The suit by Matawalle against the journalists and their employers comes shortly after a group within the All Progressives Congress known as Akida Forum, called for a thorough investigation of the minister of state over the rising insecurity in North-West states.
But Matawalle has repeatedly denied all the allegations of his links with bandits.
