The legal team employed by the publisher, naijatodaynew.com, Prince Adetunji Fabode to institute legal action against Princess Folasade Abeo, over malicious defamation of character has written the self acclaimed Iyaloja General Of Oyo state to take caution to avoid legal battles with its client.
In a letter to Princess Folasade Abeo signed by barrister… Esq and obtained by newsmen in Ibadan, the solicitors insisted that their client is not interested in offering any apology as demanded by Abeo as no legal wrong was committed by Adetunji Fabode by his publication of the 14th day of November, 2023.
The letter followed a response to a malicious publication against the publisher of Nijatodaynews, Prince Adetunji Fabode sponsored by Mrs. Folashade Abeo, the self acclaimed iyaloja General of Oyo state through an online news platform, mouthpiecengr.com where she insisted that the story publish on the attack on some traditional rulers in Oyo state was untrue.
Recall that Folasade Abeo was reported to have sponsored some thugs to attack some traditional rulers in Oyo state alleging them of supporting the due process conducted to elected new Iyaloja General Of Oyo State earlier in 2023. But Abeo’s reaction in a publication, described the claims as false thereby asking for a public apology from Prince Adetunji Fabode.
Princess Folasade Abeo through her sponsored publication rubbished the renowned publisher’s name in the mud in order to continue her campaign of calumny targeted at staining his personality so she could distract the publisher from making further publications that reveals the truth about her person as she continue the illegal pursuit of her ambition to become the Iyaloja general of Oyo state against popular opinion.
A copy of the letter reads in part:
RE: DEMAND FOR APOLOGY AND RETRACTION OF MALICIOUS DEFAMATION
“The above subject matter refers.”
“We are Solicitors to MR. TUNJI FABODE of NAIJA TODAY NEWS BLOG (hereinafter referred to as “our client”) and on his behalf and unequivocal instructions, we write you this explicit response.
Our client received your letter dated the 15th day of November, 2023 in respect of the above subject matter and we have his unequivocal instructions to respond accordingly.
First of all, we object to your malicious and malafide description of our client’s business as “infamous” blog at the first paragraph of your letter and we urge you to retract such statement upon the receipt of this correspondence as same does not represent any iota of truth and constitutes misrepresentation and assassination of our client’s business reputation to say the least.
What is more, be informed prima facie, that our client did not make any publication on the 13th day of November with the title: “Iyaloja General: Abeo Rubbishes Makinde’s Involvement, Sponsors Hoodlums Against Oyo Monarchs”. We urge you to advise your client to be well guided by the facts and circumstances surrounding the publication being referred to, before proceeding with the instructions seeking to initiate a correspondence to impugn our client’s reputation.
We must also clarify that our client owe the Executive Governor of Oyo State in high esteem and did not make any publication which seeks to put any one with logger heads with the Governor of Oyo State. Your client’s insinuations in your letter in that regard; only exists in the figment of her imagination.
Please take notice that our client stand firmly by the publication made on his News Blog on the 14th day of November, 2023 with the title: “Iyaloja General: Abeo Rubbishes Makinde’s Involvement, Sponsors Hoodlums Against Oyo Monarchs (“publication”); as its indisputably represents the true reportage of the occurrences, facts and events surrounding the fracas about the occupation of the stool of Iyaloja General of Oyo State which occurred at the event being described in the publication and we also make bold to state that our client is not sponsored by anyone contrary to the allegations in your letter as he is only carrying out his duties as a seasoned journalist of several years of repute.
We must mention that it is flabbergasting that your letter did not specify with particularity as required by the law, the portions and wordings of the publication under reference, which allegedly defamed your client’s character apart from quoting the title of the publication in the opening paragraph of your letter. It is the law that you, as the alleger must of necessity plead and state in verbatim in the exact language rendered, the defamatory words or publications allegedly published by our client and the damages or effects of same on your client in the eye of right thinking observer. Please see Egbe v. Adefarasin (1987) 1 SC 1; Okafor v. Ifeanyi (1979) 3 – 4 SC 99; Olaniyi v. Elero (2008) ALL FWLR (pt. 411) 975.
We state without any fear of equivocation contrary to your client’s representations in your letter that the content of our client’s publication of the 14th day of November, 2023 is not defamatory of your client in any way or manner and it vividly represents nothing but the truth of what transpired at the event being reported as allowed by the law,
In law, defamation also called calumny, vilification, traducement, slander (for transitory statements) and libel (for written, broadcast or otherwise published words) – is the communication of statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government, or nation a negative or inferior image. As such, any disparaging statement made about another, which is communicated or published, may well be a defamatory statement capable of giving rise to an action in libel or slander. We refer you to the case of BEKEE & ORS V. BEKEE (2012) LPELR-21270(CA) as held by Per UCHECHUKWU ONYEMENAM, JCA (P. 19, paras. D-F).
The law is also trite that a publication would not be tagged as defaming if the meaning of the statements contained in the publications are not defamatory and are true of the person or event on which same was published. Please see Per UCHECHUKWU ONYEMENAM, JCA (P. 20, paras. D-G) in the case of the case of BEKEE & ORS V. BEKEE (SUPRA)
Having said the above, our clients firmly believes and states that there is nothing in the publication under reference, which was written malafide to impugn or defame the character of your client and the publication does not set your client against anyone contrary to what was stated in your letter. It is thus, in view of the foregoing that we stat that the call of your client that our client should submit and publish a letter of apology within 7 days is uncalled for, unnecessary and unwarranted as it is based on misrepresentation of facts and law.
Please take notice that our client is not interested in offering any apology to your client as no legal wrong was committed by our client by its publication of the 14th day of November, 2023. You may proceed with whatever further instructions your client renders to you whether in the court of law or elsewhere, as it is trite that the machinery of the law might be slow but it must surely take its course and justice as it is, is not a one-way traffic, thus not meant for your client alone.
We firmly believe the wise counsel will prevail.
Accept the assurances of our best professional regards”.
With this letter, there is a high possiblity of a legal battle between the duo if caution is not taken accordingly.
