Defamation: Court Orders EFCC to Pay Ex-Power Minister, Agunloye, N10m

Alex Enumah in Abuja 

Justice Peter Kekemeke of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting at Maitama, Abuja, has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to pay former Minister of Power, Dr Olu Agunloye, the sum of N10 million as compensation for damages suffered as a result of the commission’s libelous publication.

Justice Kekemeke, in a judgment delivered on Wednesday, held that the anti-graft agency indeed damaged the reputation of the former minister through a libelous publication on its social media handles.

Agunloye had instituted a N1 billion defamation suit against the EFCC over defamatory publication on the commission’s website and X (formerly Twitter) handle, entitled ‘EFCC Arraigns Agunloye over $6 billion fraud.’

The claimant in the suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/1199/2024, and filed by his lawyer, Adeola Adedipe (SAN), stated that EFCC has damaged his good name and dragged his integrity into murky waters, when it portrayed him as a corrupt and fraudulent individual through a post published on its official website and other allied online platforms, with the caption, ‘EFCC arraigns Agunloye over $6 billion fraud.’

He, therefore, sought a declaration of the court that the post is false and defamatory of him.

Agunloye also sought an order for EFCC to retract the defamatory publication against him and tender unreserved apologies.

He further sought the payment of compensation of N1 billion as general and exemplary damage to him.

Delivering judgment, Justice Kekemeke held that elements of defamation: publication of a statement in permanent form; the publication refers to someone; it injures the person’s reputation in the sight of reasonable members of the public, must be present before someone could be said to have been defamed.

He held that in the instant case, the contentious publication is in permanent form, adding that Agunloye’s name was mentioned. 

The court further held that EFCC’s sole witness in the case, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Umar Hussain Babangida, despite initially denying knowledge of the said publication later owned up and admitted that it was from the defendant’s media department. 

According to the judge, the case did not challenge EFCC’s power to investigate economic and financial crime as claimed by the defendant.

He noted that having gone through the charge in the criminal case against the claimant before the Apo Division of the FCT High Court, there is no where in it that claimed fraud, contrary to the EFCC’s publication.

The court added that the issue of fraud is not in any of the exhibits tendered before it in the course of hearing the case as stated in what it described as “sensational headline” in the publication. 

The judge held that EFCC failed to prove the truth in the said publication, adding that it is even not fair and does not represent court proceedings.

While saying that EFCC is not a news agency but an investigative agency, Justice Kekemeke held that the commission knew that Agunloye is not involved in a fraud of $6 billion or any fraud at all. 

He then held that malice has been proved by the claimant and therefore resolved issues one and two in favour of the former minister and subsequently entered judgment in Agunloye’s favour.

The court declared that the contentious publication on EFCC official website and X handle is false and defamatory.

It then ordered the commission to retract the publication and offer public apology on its website and two other national dailies. 

The court further ordered a perpetual injunction restraining EFCC from defaming the former minister and then awarded the sum of N10 million damages against the commission.

Reacting to the judgment in an interview with journalists, counsel for EFCC, Dr Wahab Shittu (SAN), declared that the defendant would appeal the judgment.

According to him, though the court had made its pronouncement, the case was premature as the claimant’s criminal charge had yet to be concluded and judgment delivered. 

“Though the court has delivered its judgment, we are definitely going to appeal the court’s decision,” the senior advocate said.