Court Fines Sahara Reporters N4bn Over Alleged False Publication Against Saraki

A High Court has given judgement ordering Sahara Reporters to pay Senate President
Bukola Saraki the sum of N4 billion after
they wrote a false story against him in
2015.

An Ilorin High Court, presided over by Justice
Adeyinka Oyinloye on Wednesday slammed a
N4 billion judgment against the publisher of
popular online newspaper, Sahara
Reporters, Mr. Omoyele Sowore, over a
series of stories published two years ago by
the medium against Senate President, Dr.
Bukola Saraki.
According to NewTelegraph, the judgment
was in relation to stories published by the
online medium against Saraki between
September and December of 2015. The
Senate President had, through his lawyer,
Babatunde Olomu, asked for the
intervention of the court following the
publication of series of libellous stories
against him by Sahara Reporters. Both
Sowore and Sahara Reporters were joined
as defendants in the suit marked as
KWS/23/2017.
Delivering the judgment, the court agreed
with Olomou and granted all the reliefs
sought by the claimant in the case. The
reliefs granted are as follows: “The sum of
N1 billion as general and aggravated
damages for libellous words falsely,
maliciously and recklessly published by the
defendants of and concerning the claimant
in the online issue of Sahara Reporters of
October 5, 2015 under the caption “Nigeria
at 55: Bukola Saraki and 83 Inmates Are
Running the Asylum”.
“The sum of N1 billion as general and
aggravated damages for libellous words
falsely, maliciously and recklessly published
by the defendants of and concerning the
claimant in the online issue of Sahara
Reporters of Sahara Reporters of September
20, 2015 under the caption: “A polished
Name for political immorality. Time for Saraki
to Go!”
“The sum of N1 billion as general and
aggravated damages for libellous words
falsely, maliciously and recklessly published
by the defendants of and concerning the
claimant in the online issue of Sahara
Reporters of Sahara Reporters of November
09, 2015 under the caption: “Bukola Saraki
On a shopping Spree to Buy Judges…Stop
Being a Clown And A Coward Man Up, face
The Music”.
“The sum of N1 billion as general and
aggravated damages for libellous words
falsely, maliciously and recklessly published
by the defendants of and concerning the
claimant in the online issue of Sahara
Reporters of Sahara Reporters of December
1, 2015 under the caption: “Arms Contract
Scandal: Senator Saraki. Blackmailed CBN
Officials To Pay N250 Million Hush Funds”.
“An order for injunction restraining the
defendants from further writing, printing or
causing to be written, printed or circulated
or otherwise published of the claimant the
said, or similar libel.
“An order directing the defendants to
remove the offending publications from its
website on the internet within three days
from the date of judgment and an order
directing the defendants to publish an
apology to the claimant on its online
newspaper and in three other daily
newspapers.”

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