Delta State High Court in Bomadi has awarded N30 million in damages against International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) and one of its reporters, Isaac Markson, for a defamatory publication against a former Director-General of Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Patrick Ziakede Akpobolokemi.

Justice S.O. Adolor held that the story: “The hidden truth that led to the killing of 17 soldiers in Okuama community,” published on April 13, 2024, was malicious.

He ordered the defendants to retract the publication and issue a public apology in three national newspapers as well as on ICIR website, while restraining them from making further defamatory statements against the claimant.

Akpobolokemi sued over the report, which linked him to deployment of soldiers to Okuama and suggested that he used his influence to skew military intervention in favour of his community, Okoloba.

He claimed the publication implied that his alleged role contributed to the tragic killing of 17 soldiers in the community.

Aggrieved by what he described as a baseless and damaging report, Akpobolokemi insisted that the allegations were false and portrayed him as complicit in a national tragedy, thereby gravely injuring his reputation.

They contended that the court lacked territorial jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

Justice Adolor, however, dismissed the objection, holding that online publications are deemed published in any place where they are accessed and read.

The court relied on the uncontroverted evidence of two witnesses, who testified that they accessed, downloaded and read the publication in Bomadi, Delta State, and that their perception of the claimant was negatively affected by the report.

The court held that this sufficiently established publication in Delta State and conferred jurisdiction on the court.

On the substantive case, the court found that the publication directly referred to Akpobolokemi and portrayed him as an influential figure, who allegedly orchestrated or influenced deployment of soldiers to Okuama, with grave implications linking him to the killing of 17 soldiers.

Justice Adolor held that the report went beyond fair reportage and crossed into defamatory imputation by presenting unproven allegations as facts.

It held that the claimant was never shown to have played any role in the incident and that the defendants could not rely on unnamed or untendered probe reports to justify their claims.

According to the court, imputing criminal complicity to a person in the absence of any arrest, prosecution, or conviction amounted to defamation.

The defendants’ reliance on justification, fair comment, qualified privilege and responsible journalism was rejected by the court.

Justice Adolor held that the defence of justification collapsed because the defendants failed to prove the truth of the allegations, while fair comment was unavailable since the underlying facts were not shown to be true.

The court further held that the defence of qualified privilege could not avail the defendants in the face of evidence pointing to malice, particularly their failure to verify serious allegations before publication.

The court also found that malice could be inferred from circumstances of the case, stressing that responsible journalism demands accuracy, especially when reporting on issues capable of destroying reputation.

It held the defendants acted recklessly by publishing grave allegations without proper verification or evidential support.

While declining the claimant’s request for fees on the grounds that litigation costs cannot be transferred to opposing party without proof, the court granted substantial reliefs in his favour.

In addition to N30 million damages awarded jointly and severally against the defendants, the court ordered the retraction of the publication and a public apology to be issued within seven days in three national newspapers and on ICIR website.

It restrained the defendants from further publishing defamatory statements against the claimant, with post-judgment interest to accrue at prevailing CBN rate until the judgment sum is fully liquidated.

The judge added Akpobolokemi successfully proved his case on the balance of probabilities, while defendants failed to justify or excuse their publication.

The court said the law does not grant immunity to online publications and that journalists and media houses are bound by rules of accuracy, fairness and responsibility in reporting. (The Nation)