Umar Damagun, the Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has threatened legal action against Deji Adeyanju, a lawyer and rights activist, over defamatory allegations made against him.
Similarly, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu, the Acting National Secretary of the PDP, has also warned Adeyanju of both civil and criminal lawsuits in response to the alleged defamatory comments.
Through their lawyer, Johnson Usman, SAN, both Damagun and Anyanwu have demanded that Adeyanju retract his statements and issue an apology in national newspapers and across social media platforms to avoid a legal battle.
The two PDP leaders communicated their intentions in separate letters, copies of which were provided to the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja.
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Damagun’s letter was dated December 4 and received by Adeyanju on the same day, while Anyanwu’s letter was dated December 5.
One of the letters, titled “Demand for the Immediate Retraction of the Defamatory Statements Made Against Amb. Umar Iliya Damagun, the Acting National Chairman of PDP on Social Media Platforms: With A Call for a Corresponding Apology,” was signed by Israel Ujah, a lawyer from Usman’s firm.
The letter claimed that Adeyanju had deliberately made derogatory and inflammatory remarks aimed at damaging the reputations of Damagun and Anyanwu.
The lawyer stated that the remarks were intended to tarnish the reputations of the two leaders, who are held in high regard by their supporters and the public.
Ujah accused Adeyanju of describing Damagun in a podcast interview as a “Tea man” who serves tea at the residence of Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
He also alleged that Adeyanju referred to Anyanwu as a “Kilishi Man” who serves “Kilishi” at Gbajabiamila’s home.
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Additionally, Ujah accused Adeyanju of stating that the current PDP leadership is under the influence of Nyesom Wike at the national level and claimed that Damagun and Anyanwu had failed to effectively lead the party as a credible opposition.
“By the tenor of your unsubstantiated and defamatory publication, you went on to discourage the members of the public from patronising and holding our client in trust.
”You clothed him with a toga of being a ‘tea server’ and infantile personality who is not worthy of any political validation and patronage.
“We wish to remind you that your right to freedom of speech does not extend to the prism of your catalog of the unwarranted verbal onslaught against the person of our client.
“Your narrative regarding the PDP National Chairman ‘serving tea’ at Femi Gbajabiamila’s residence is a figurative critique of the perceived lack of strong opposition from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the current government.
“By necessary implication, all these statements were intentionally made by you to drop our client’s popularity amongst his teaming supporters and party members, and to also stain his political career ambition.
“Your defamatory statements have exposed our client to serious political embarrassment, psychological trauma, and unquantifiable humiliation.
“We are not unmindful of the fact that your distasteful remarks were sponsored by our client’s political opponent and bearing in mind your selfish interest.
“It is against the above background that we hereby demand an immediate retraction of the above defamatory statements — Podcast interview made against our client on various social media within three days of the receipt of this letter.
“We further demand that your retraction should be accompanied by a statement of apology to be published in the national dailies and other social media.
“Failure on your part to toe the path of honour in this regard; we shall be left with no option but to explore the available remedies in protecting our client’s constitutional rights within the legal parameters.
“This shall include both civil and criminal litigations.
“Take final notice, that this last resort shall be without further notice to you and shall be done with all the attendant publicity.
“A word is enough for the wise!” Mr Ujah concluded in one of the letters.
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