Presiding judge, Justice N.K. Nwosu-Iheme, delivered the ruling on Tuesday, rejecting the objection filed by Ubani’s counsel, S.M. Oluebube, against the admissibility of documents sought to be tendered by the governor’s legal team.
Governor Otti, through his counsel, Dr. Sonny Ajala SAN, is seeking ₦5 billion in general damages for alleged defamation. According to writs of summons reviewed by Nairametrics, the governor claims that the defendant’s publication—titled “Governor Alexander Otti of Abia State Should Be Clapped For”—damaged his reputation, political standing, and public image. The article was posted on Ubani’s Facebook page, with 6,300 followers, and later republished on his blog equity reporters.ng on September 26, 2024.
In the publication, Ubani alleged that the governor, through proxies, had acquired two failing hotels in Umuahia, raising questions about the transactions and their implications.
Otti’s counsel also asked the court to issue an injunction restraining the blogger from publishing or syndicating further defamatory content, and to mandate an unreserved public apology to be published in four national newspapers.
At the resumed hearing, Ajala presented Architect Uche Uche as the claimant’s first prosecution witness. Uche adopted his two written depositions and testified regarding the alleged defamatory statements.
Ajala then attempted to tender two additional documents as evidence:
- An October 6, 2024, online post titled “No Lawyer from Governor Otti Has Served Sir Don Ubani Any Notice”
- Another article titled “Lawyer Counters Blogger’s Claim of Not Receiving Gov. Otti’s Libel Notice”
Defense counsel Oluebube objected to the admissibility of the documents, arguing that they were not front-loaded alongside the writ of summons, as required by procedural rules.
In response, Ajala argued that the documents were relevant to the case and met all legal criteria. He further cited Order 7 Rule of the FCT High Court Rules, which permits the court to overlook procedural lapses in the interest of substantive justice.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme, in a bench ruling, upheld Ajala’s argument and admitted the documents as evidence. The judge then instructed the claimant’s counsel to submit the list of admitted documents to the court clerk in the proper format.
The case was adjourned to June 2, 2025, for the continuation of the hearing.