Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has slammed a N7 billion libel suit on ThisDay Newspapers to seek damages for a story published in its June 23, 2020 edition.
Information and Communications Commissioner Paulinus Nsirim on Wednesday confirmed the suit in a statement.
He said the governor described the publication captioned, “With Wike, Obaseki Meets His PDP’S Waterloo, Almost,” as maliciously and falsely portraying him as an unreliable friend or person.
The governor, in the suit filed at the Port Harcourt High Court by his lawyer Emmanuel C. Ukala, said the defendant further portrayed him as a selfish politician and a person who meddled in and exerted subterranean influence in judicial matters in courts sitting in Port Harcourt to achieve selfish political interest.
The governor is seeking an order of mandatory injunction compelling the defendants to withdraw, retract and recant the said libelous publication.
The statement reads: “The retraction is to be published at the front page (and to devote the whole full front page to the publication of the retraction).
“ThisDay Newspaper is also to publish an apology in the terms acceptable to the claimant and with his prior approval at the back page (on the full back page) in the same edition on which the retraction is published, and two consecutive editions of ThisDay Newspapers.
“The claimant is also seeking an order of injunction restraining the Defendants by themselves or by their servants, agents, privies and associates from further publishing the said libel or any manner however, and whatsoever, continuing to circulate the said libelous publication concerning the claimant.”
