Governor Otti Demands ₦50bn From Facebook User Over Defamatory Post

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has demanded a retraction, public apology, and the sum of N50bn in damages from one Hon. Tobias Chukwudi Egeonu, also known as Hon. Toby Chuks, for allegedly publishing a defamatory post against him on Facebook.

The demand, contained in a letter dated December 13, 2024, was issued on the governor’s behalf by his legal counsel, Dr. Sonny Ajala, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria at Deeplaw Associates.

The publication, titled ‘What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1,’ was posted on Egeonu’s Facebook wall on December 8, 2024.

Egeonu, who calls himself a public affairs analyst and political commentator, in the social media post, accused Otti of mismanagement of funds during his time as Group Managing Director of the defunct Diamond Bank and corruption in his current role as governor of Abia State, among others.

But reacting, Ajala described Chuks’ post as “unwarranted online libelous publication from the pits of hell”. In the letter dated December 13, 2024, the senior advocate called the allegations “patented falsehood” that have caused “unquantifiable mental torture, depression, denigration, corrosive erosion of reputation” to Governor Otti.

According Ajala, the post has damaged Otti’s standing in the eyes of the public, the banking community, and the people of Abia State.

He gave Chuks seven days to comply with Governor Otti’s demands, which include a written retraction of the defamatory post to be published on his Facebook page and in four national dailies and a written apology to be published on Chuks’ Facebook page.

The senior advocate further demanded on behalf of Otti the payment of N50bn in damages for the harm caused to his client’s reputation. He warned that failure to comply within the stipulated time frame will result in legal action.

“By your online libelous publication on your Facebook Wall, ‘Hon. Toby Chuks’ on the 8th day of December, 2024, which you ought to know and indeed knew to be patented falsehood, you let loose your intent to cast on permanent form, retrievable and available to the global audience, your syndicated tissues of wicked and malicious lies against our client.

As at the date of this demand letter, numerous persons have read your distasteful online publication, 25 persons have commented on your libelous publication. Countless persons have read the offensive publications on the several WhatsApp platforms that you re-published and circulated the false allegations against our client,” part of the letter read.

“Our client unequivocally denies in its entirety the false and disparaging online publication on your Facebook Wall, ‘Hon. Toby Chuks captioned; ‘What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1’ published on 8th December, 2024 and your subsequent Vol. 2 published through the same medium days after.

Our client informed us and we truly believe him that he has no criminal indictment whatsoever and that the content of your online publication in its entirety are blatant falsehood.”

Governor Otti’s are as follows: “A written retraction of your offensive and malicious online defamatory publication of 8th December, 2024 captioned; ‘What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1’ to be published/circulated on your Facebook Wall ‘Hon. Toby Chuks and the said retraction to be further published in four national dailies to wit; the Thisday Newspaper, the Punch Newspaper, the Nation Newspaper and the national Ambassador Newspaper.

“A written APOLOGY from you to our client to be published/circulated on your Facebook Wall ‘Hon. Toby Chuks just as your offensive online defamatory publication of 8th December, 2024 captioned; ‘What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1.’

“Compensation of N50Billion (Fifty Billion Naira) to our client, for your false and malicious online defamatory publication of 8th December, 2024 captioned; ‘What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1’ that grossly tarnished the reputation of our client before his colleagues’ in the financial sector, his political associates and the good people of Abia State that elected him their Governor in 2023.”