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Defamatory: Victory For Press Freedom As BSN Sports Humiliates NFF’s Ruth David In Court
By Niyi Busari
The Acting Director of Competition, Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ruth David, today (Monday) lost its defamatory case against BSN Sports filed at the FCT High Court, Gwagwalada over a publication titled “U20 FIFA World Cup – Allowance Scandal Hits Falconets Camp,” BSNSports.com.ng can report.
In 2018, two months after the publication, Ruth David sued BSN Sports in the suit number CV/1975/2019 for defamation adding that the publication is aimed at disparaging her personality. She however, prayed that the court asked the defendant to pay the sum of Twenty million naira (N20m).
BSN Sports on 4th August, 2018 few weeks after the Nigeria U20 women’s team, the Falconets lost out at the world Cup wrote the story that the federation failed to pay the players and officials match bonuses and allowance for the African qualifiers and 10-day camping in Austria.
Ruth David in her written address before the court showing the payment of the players and officials of the team for allowance received for one win and one draw at the World Cup. The payment of the two-match allowance according to the exhibit was paid on 4th October, 2018 while the story was published two months (August 2018) before the purported payment. More so, the publication dwelled on the non-payment of the six matches the team played during the African Qualifiers where they won five games and drew one.
Defendant lawyer, Barrister Dr. Celsus Ukpong (esq) stated unequivocally that the publication was not aimed at Ruth David but the NFF who didn’t see the publication as defamatory and reason they refused to be joined in the case.
Not being convinced by the plaintiff claims as she failed to provide enough evidence and witness to back her claims, the judge on Monday 6th March, 2023 said the evidences provided by the defendant were overwhelming that the publication was not libellous nor defamatory.
Justice A.I Akobi, therefore threw out the case and ruled in favour of Mr. Niyi Busari, Publisher BSN Sports.
Featured
North East Commission; Group Heads For Court Over Reappointment of Former MD. Mohamed Alkali
…. Exposed How Billion was looted
Crises situations in the North East, might assume another dimension, as the North East Commission statutory established to address humanitarian crisis and infrastructural deficit, as a result of insurgency , is embedded in management crises over the appointment of the management Director.
Just as the Reappointment of Mohammed Alkali Goni, after serving his five years as tenure in office as the managing Director has become a matter of litigations, allegations of mismanagement of resources in the Commission has emerged over the weekend in Abuja .
Addressing newsmen, in Abuja on Saturday, North East pressure Group, said that the appointment of management Staff of the Commission has been politicise to a level where every appointment zone to the North East has been taken over by Borno state
The Coordinator of the group , Dr. Haruna Garus Gololo, a political activist, who led the group in a terse press Statement said that the group will be left with no option than to approach the Court to seek redress , if the concerned authorities failed to address the rot in the Commission.
” We are constraint, to draw the attention of the President and Commander of the Armed Forces, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, to the abuse of the Act. establishing the North East Commission ( NEC), by his Vice president, Senator Kashim Shettima over the statutory appointment of the managing Director of the Commission “
” The Act . clearly defined the procedures and laid down rules on the appointment of the Managing Director upon the approval by the National Assembly, which stipulates five years tenure, it is this act that has been subjected to gross Constitutional abuse with the Reappointment of Alkali, after years in Office ” he said.
Dr. Gololo, also an All progressive Congress ( APC), Chieftain said that
” Since the inceptions of this administration, every Federal appointments meant for North East is being taken to Borno state with impunity .”
Continue, the one coordinator of the All progressive Congress (APC), pointed at the appointment of the Minister of Agriculture and the recent Reappointment of Mohammed Alkali Goni, for another five years as against the Constitutional provisions “
” There are about six states in the North East, Gombe , Bauchi, Yobe and Borno, but all the appointment have been to Borno”
He warned that” we have concluded our investigations using some auditors and discovered the billions of stolen in the Commission, rather than addressing the challenges in North East, the management has become part of the crises because of their desperation to cover up the monumental Corruption”
Gololo, accused the Vice president, Senator Kashim Shettima of the implications of supporting the Reappointment of Alkali, as this may further create another crises in the Commission.
” We are given the presidency only Seven days to reverse the Reappointment of Alkali, because it is the turn of Gombe state, we have competent people in Gombe and Bauchi “
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