Apostle Johnson Suleiman
In a ruling by the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, Nollywood actress, Halima Abubakar has been ordered to pay the sum of N10 million to Apostle Johnson Suleiman, the founder of Omega Fire Ministries International.
The court, presided over by Justice Enobie Obanor, deemed this amount as aggravated and general damages for the defamatory posts made by the actress against the cleric on social media.
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The court instructed Abubakar to retract all defamatory statements made against Apostle Suleiman via her Instagram handle, @Halimabubakar.
This judgement stems from a defamation suit filed by the cleric, who alleged that the actress made several libellous statements on her social media platform, accusing him of womanizing and being diabolical.
Apostle Suleiman highlighted specific derogatory posts made by Abubakar, including accusations of infidelity and irresponsibility.
These false allegations, he argued, tarnished his reputation in the eyes of the public.
Despite being served with court documents, Abubakar did not appear in court or appoint legal representation, leading to the court ruling in favor of Apostle Suleiman.
The judgement, delivered on March 27 and certified on April 8, underscores the seriousness of defamation and the legal consequences for those found guilty of spreading false information.
“This issue is therefore resolved in favour of the claimant. Accordingly, judgment is entered in favour of the claimant as follows:
“A declaration that the statements published by the defendant against the Claimant on her Instagram handle @halimabubakar, falsely and maliciously written and published to the general public, are defamatory of the person of the claimant.
“The sum of N10,000,000.00 only to the Claimant as aggravated and exemplary damages for libel contained in the publication of the defendant against the claimant on her Instagram handle @Halimabubakar and caused to be published in several blogs.
“An order of this Honourable Court compelling the defendant to pay for the deleting of all links and reportage of the said defamatory comments on all platforms on the internet,” Justice Obano held.
