A Lagos High Court has on Thursday adjourned hearing in a defamation suit against controversial social media critic, Martin Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan till January 23, 2025.
VeryDarkMan had arrived the court premises at 9:30 a.m. for hearing on the suit brought against him by Femi Falana, SAN, and his son, Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz.
The social media critic had arrived in court dressed in red native attire and surrounded by fans cheering him on.
Falz and his father were, however, absent in court on Thursday.
The self-acclaimed social media ‘police’ had on Wednesday shared an Instagram video that he does not owe either Falz or his father apology since he was simply exposing corruption.
LEADERSHIP recalls that on October 14, Justice Matthias Dawodu, while ruling on an ex parte application for an order of interim and preemptive remedy brought by the Falanas, held that they have legal rights to be protected from being slandered.
The court also ordered VeryDarkMan to bring down the alleged defamatory video he made on September 24 against the Senior Advocate of Nigeria and his son, Falz.
Justice Dawodu also ordered VeryDarkMan to refrain from releasing, publishing, or circulating any defamatory videos and comments against the senior lawyer and his son on all his online social media handles and pages, pending the hearing of a suit filed by the duo.
The judge further ordered that all the processes in the matter be served on VeryDarkMan through his lawyer, Deji Adeyanju.
Recall that Falz and his father are claiming N500 million each as damages on separate lawsuits against VeryDarkMan over a controversial audio recording he shared online.
The audio had alleged that Falz and Falana contacted crossdresser Idris Okuneye, popularly called Bobrisky while he was serving prison term, demanding money to get him an executive pardon.
Bobrisky however, denied the authenticity of the audio.
The Falanas stated that the alleged defamatory publication is still trending on the defendant’s online handles and pages, and as such, alleged that the injury to their reputation continues as long as the publication remains online.
VeryDarkMan has applied to the Court for leave to appeal the ruling.
He also submitted, that the refusal by the court would amount to a miscarriage of justice, as the case involves significant legal questions that merit further review.
“A refusal to grant leave may result in the enforcement of a decision that does not reflect a correct application of the law, leading to outcomes that may be detrimental not only to the parties involved but also to the administration of justice as a whole.
“The appellate court’s role in clarifying and, where necessary, correcting trial court decisions is vital in maintaining the integrity of the judicial system,” he stated.
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