A Rivers State High Court, sitting in Port Harcourt has restrained the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, from further listing Prince Uche Secondus, the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) among corrupt Nigerians who allegedly looted the country’s treasury.
The presiding judge, Justice Adama Iyayi-Lamikanta, who is the Chief Judge of River State, also ordered counsel to Secondus to serve the defendants hearing notice, just like they served them the originating processes and the accompanying documents in the newspaper.
She adjourned the matter to April 28, 2018.
The court’s restraining order on the defendants was one of the prayers of Secondus, who also sought N1.5 billion damage for being listed among the country’s top looters.
The order followed a motion brought by Secondus seeking an interlocutory injunction against further publication of his name on the list.
The PDP chairman, in suit PHC/1013/2018, is praying the court to see the inclusion of his name on the list as libelous and, therefore, sued Mohammed, the Federal Government and Vintage Press, for N1.5 billion, as damages for the alleged libel.
Secondus is also praying the court to make the defendants retract the libellous material in the media outlets where they published the “looters’ list” that listed him.
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According to the list released by the minister, the PDP chairman was said to have looted the sum of N200 million, which he allegedly collected from the Office of then National Security Adviser on February 19, 2015.
During the proceeding in court, the defendants were absent as well as their counsel.
The counsel to the PDP chairman, Emeka Etiaba (SAN), who spoke to reporters after the court proceeding, wondered why the defendants were not in court, stressing that there was no truth in the list.
Etiaba, who also has Emeka Okpoko (SAN), among others, in his team, however, expressed confidence that the parties would all be present on the adjourned date.
He said: “But we have told Nigerians this is one case of executive recklessness which comes up once in a while. We hope at the end of the day, to prove to Nigerians that this is nothing, but a gimmick, a ploy to destroy the PDP and its leadership because of 2019.”
On the second prayer denied by the Judge, Etiaba said: “The court was minded to believing that that prayer deals with publications that go beyond the ones that had our plaintiff’s name.
“The court felt no, it is at large and cannot be granted, but we are happy with the one granted. Justice is two-way.”
He added: “We will also serve them vide the newspapers and also deposit same in the office of the Attorney General of the Federation.”
