The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has upheld a judgement of the Federal Capital Territory High Court awarding N10 million damages against an Abuja-based newspaper, Abuja Inquirer, and its publisher for a defamatory and libelous publication against Dr Kingsley Kuku, former Special Adviser to former president Goodluck Jonathan.
Kuku was also Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme during the Jonathan era.
The High court gave the verdict way back 2017.
Upholding the lower court’s judgement, the appellate court dismissed the appeal filed by the newspaper seeking to upturn the decision of the FCT High Court which awarded N10m to the plaintiff for its defamatory publication in August 2015.
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The newspaper had then published that Kuku fled Nigeria after being declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Reacting to the verdict at the premises of the court, counsel to Kuku, Mr. Solomon Tunyan, hailed the appellate court’s decision and said that the judgment would serve as a lesson to those who have chosen the path of making libelous publication against innocent people just to tarnish their hard-earned reputation.
Solomon averred that Kuku is a man who brought so much peace and stability to the Niger Delta of this country, thereby bringing peace to the region.
Apart from upholding the judgment, the Court of Appeal equally dismissed the appeal as lacking in merit and awarded N50,000 cost against the appellant.
