Alleged Defamation: Awujale Sues Ayefele For N200bn

The Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, has dragged ace musician and owner of internet fresh FM 105.9 Radio Station, Yinka Ayefele, to court over alleged defamation.

In the suit filed at an Oyo State High Court, the monarch asked for N200 billion as damages and compensation for the defamation contained in the radio programme.

The claimant said on December 22, 2019 during the course of the radio station programme, titled: “Talk your own with Chikito Duru”, the defendant stored on his news server, published or caused to be published by his internet website, which has the address www.facebook.comfreshfmibadanvideos from December 22. 2019 till September 4, 2020.

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In a statement of claim, the counsel to the claimant, Ayanlaja Adesanya, noted that the said words referred and were understood to refer to the claimant in their natural and ordinary meaning and were calculated to disparage the claimant in his status as a person of global repute and in his office as the Awujale and paramount ruler of Ijebuland.
“The claimant has also been injured in his credit, character and reputation and has been lowered in the estimation of right-thinking members of society generally and hurt in his feelings.

“The defendant published the said words concerning the claimant out of malevolence or spite to promote the defendant’s business with a view of increasing profit in terms of financial income and gain,” he maintained.

The claimant insisted that the defendant was aware that the said words were defamatory and are untrue, since it was alleged to have occurred in 1984, adding that the defendant was reckless to check whether or not the publication was true, but blinded by the prospect of the material advantage of using the person and office of the claimant to attract more listeners to its programmes.

In an 11 paragraph of the monarch’s witness statement, he recalled that he received various phone calls from some of his subjects in Nigeria and in Diaspora about the trending internet radio programme stored on the website of the defendant from January to September 2020.