Lt. General Onyeabo Azubuike Ihejirika (rtd.), the former Chief of Army Staff, has reportedly sued Dr. Stephen Davies, an Australian hostage negotiator.
ThisDay reports that Ihejirika in a libel suit filed at the Abuja High Court by his team of lawyers, Chief Nnoruka Udechukwu (SAN), Professor C.U. Ilegbune (SAN) and Ben Anechebe (SAN), is demanding N100 billion as aggravated damages for defamation, after Davis accused him of sponsoring Boko Haram insurgents in the North-eastern part of Nigeria.
The retired army general, who said he has suffered grievous wrong further exposed that he has been exposed to scandal, odium, ridicule, humiliation, adding that his character, credit and reputation has been brought into disrepute, both in Nigeria and abroad following the libellous statement made by Davis.
It was gathered that after securing an order of court to serve the process abroad, Ihejirika’s lawyers have applied to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to enable them serve Davis who lives in Perth, Australia, with the court’s processes.
Meanwhile, because Australia and Nigeria are members of the Commonwealth, a special procedure applies when serving court processes on defendants residing in a country that is a member of the Commonwealth other than the country where the writ is issued.
Aside the N100 billion damages demanded, the former army general is also seeking an order of perpetual injunction restraining Davis or his agents from further making defamatory comments about him.
“An order for the defendant to publish forthwith a dull and unqualified retraction and apology conspicuously in the front page of THISDAY Newspaper to assuage the plaintiff for the said false malicious and libelous publication,” he said.
Ihejirika, who hinted that he retired meritoriously from the military after a successful career insisted that he served the army without flaw.
“On or about August 28, 2014, the defendant granted a multimedia and television interview broadcast to Arise Television, which aired in Nigeria, particularly in Abuja, and subsequently published by numerous newspapers and media houses; wherein the defendant, when asked during the AriseNews segment of the interview to name the sponsors of the Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria, falsely and maliciously spoke of the plaintiff in the following words, to wit: There is the former Chief of Army Staff, retired January, or actually sacked by the President, he is another sponsor. I could give you the names if you like but I have no fear that these were very confident and it is in fact Boko Haram senior commanders who have been naming them.”
Counsel to the plaintiff explained that Davis spoken words and publication in their ordinary meaning were understood by reasonable Nigerians who listened/watched the said AriseNews broadcast in Abuja to indicate that Ihejirika sponsored the Boko Haram terrorists group.
According to the plaintiff, the publication also alleged that he did not retire from the army but was sacked by President Goodluck Jonathan, implying that he had committed treason or treasonable felony.
He said the public which listened to the broadcast believed that he had conducted himself in a manner tantamount to breach of his oath of allegiance and service as a soldier and senior officer in the Nigerian Army.
It would be recalled that the retired army general left military service in January this year.
Boko Haram is a terrorist sect, whom has been waging war, insurrection or insurgency against the Nigerian government and innocent citizens. The sect has killed thousands of people since its onslaught that began in 2009 on the guise of establishing an Islamic state and putting an end to ‘Western Education’, which the sect described as ‘Sin’.
Meanwhile, the insurgents recently intensified their attacks in the North-Eastern part of the country. The extremist reportedly killed 32 people and abducted 185 women and children in Gumsuri on December 14.
On Monday morning, December 22, no fewer than 15 people were feared dead when bomb exploded at Dukku Park in Gombe, North Eastern Nigeria.
However, the Nigerian Secret Service recently revealed that the associates of Australian hostage negotiator, Davis, are frauds, and went ahead to clear ex Borno State governor Ali Modu Sheriff, who was accused alongside Ihejirika of sponsoring Boko Haram.
