Court gavel
Federal Capital Territory High Court in Jabi has officially kicked off proceedings in the N550 million defamation lawsuit filed by Senator Chris Anyanwu against former Imo State Governor, Ikedi Ohakim.
Senator Anyanwu is suing Ohakim over remarks he made in an interview with The Nation newspaper, published on January 12, 2025. According to her, the statements were defamatory and damaging to her reputation. Although the newspaper’s publishers, Vintage Press Ltd., reportedly issued an apology, Ohakim has stood by his words, describing them as “fair comment” in his legal defence.
At Monday’s sitting, Justice M.I. Sani dismissed a preliminary objection raised by Ohakim’s counsel, Ken Njemanze, SAN, who had argued that the court could not proceed without a pre-trial conference. “According to the rules, there is a need for pre-trial and it is fundamental. This would help us streamline the issues,” Njemanze maintained.
But Senator Anyanwu’s counsel, Umeh Kalu, SAN, challenged that position, arguing there was no procedural requirement for a pre-trial in this particular case. “There is no requirement for a pre-trial conference in this matter. Our witnesses have travelled long distances and are ready to testify,” Kalu said. He urged the court not to allow procedural technicalities to stall justice. “The two parties are in court and we are ready for trial,” he concluded.
Justice Sani, in a short ruling, rejected the objection and gave the green light for trial to commence.
The first witness for the claimant, Dr. Joyce Ejukonemu—a Gender Protection Specialist and Senior Researcher—took the stand and adopted her written statement. She referred to The Nation’s publication from January 12, as well as a press release by Ohakim dated January 24, 2025.
Kalu then sought to tender both documents as evidence, but Njemanze objected. He argued they were inadmissible as they were photocopies, not certified originals, and did not meet the standards set by Section 104 of the Evidence Act. “These are photocopies, not original certified true copies… There is no receipt showing payment for certification either,” he argued.
However, Kalu countered that the documents were endorsed by the National Library and complied with legal requirements. “Section 104 allows for certified copies and the endorsement shows payment was made,” he said, before presenting the original certified copies.
Justice Sani sided with the claimant and admitted the publication into evidence, marking it as Exhibit 1. “This court has the discretion to admit any relevant document,” he ruled.
Kalu went on to tender more documents, including Ohakim’s January 24 press release and a report from Naija News. Again, Njemanze raised objections—this time under Section 84 of the Evidence Act—arguing that the online report was electronically generated and lacked the required certificate of compliance.
Kalu responded that oral certification had already been included in the witness statement on oath, but later chose to withdraw the press release without further argument.
Justice Sani adjourned the case until December 1 for a ruling on the remaining admissibility issues and continuation of the trial.
NAN
