Updated: N3.6b Contract Allegations: Nwaoboshi Sues Buhari’s Aide, Onochie For N1b

Peter Nwaoboshi, the senator representing Delta North Senatorial District and Senate Commitee chairman on NDDC, has filed a N1billion libel suit at Abuja High Court against Lauretta Onochie, an aide to President Muhammadu Buhari over alleged defamation.

Nwaoboshi who who had earlier demanded a public retraction of the allegations made against his person by Onochie in a letter dated June 9 and obtained by BIGPEN in Abuja, filed the lawsuit after the expiration of 48hours deadline through his counsel, Daniel Hassan Bwala, on Monday.

The suit followed a diatribe on Nwaoboshi by Onochie resulting from a controversial press statement issued by Head of Corporate Affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Charles Odili where he had alleged that: “Senator Nwaoboshi used 11 front companies (owned or traceable to him) to secure a contract of N3.6 billion in September 2016″….in NDDC.

Nwaoboshi, in the suit number: CU/1827/2020, is praying for an order of the court directing Lauretta Onochie, who is the only respondent in the suit, to publicly apologise to him for the alleged false and misleading publication against him.

He also asking for an order of the court restraining Onochie or her agents from further publishing defamatory article against him.

The lawmaker is also praying the court among others for, “A declaration that the defendant’s post/publication of June 8, 2020 posted/published on her Facebook page Lauretta Onochie captioned: “NDDC: The Chicken Comes Home To Roost”, amounts to libel.

“An order of this Honourable Court awarding the sum of N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira) only, to the claimant as general damages against the defendant.

“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendant, her agents, servants, privies and any other person howsoever described, acting for and on her behalf, from further publishing/posting any other false and damaging publication in respect of the claimant.

“An order of this Honourable Court directing the defendant to publicly apologise to the claimant for the said false and misleading publication/post of June 8^th, 2020 and any other publication/post on her other social media platforms against the claimant.”

Meanwhile, the Abuja High Court has ordered Nwaoboshi and Onochei to maintain status quo pending the determination of the case. No date has been fixed for hearing of the case.