El-Rufai sues PDP, Olisa Metuh, Thisday for N1.5billion

Former FCT Minister and Deputy National Secretary to All

Progressive Congress, APC, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, has

instituted a N1.5billion libel suit against the PDP, its National

Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh and ThisDay newspaper

before a High Court in Abuja over statements he said were

authorized by Metuh on behalf of the PDP linking him to the

Boko Haram insurgency, which he finds defamatory.

El Rufai said the defamatory statements were published in

Thisday newspaper which he joined in the suit as third

defendant.

Mallam El-Rufai said that in a separate Thisday newspaper

publications of March 17 and March 28, Metuh claimed that he

(El-Rufai) collected N5billion as consultancy fee from the

suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido

Sanusi and also in another publication said that himself and

Gen. Buhari know more about the Boko Haram insurgency.

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He quoted one of the publications as saying,

“specifically, PDP cited the instance of an APC

chieftain, ostensibly the former Minister of the Federal

Capital Territory (FCT) Nasir El-Rufai, who collected

N5billion for consultancy fees provided to the Central

Bank and another N1.5billion diverted to APC to enable

it open offices across the federation”.

The former minister also quoted the publication of March 23

as being “boldly captioned as, ‘In a daring move, PDP says

Buhari, el-Rufai, know more about B’Haram’”.

The former minister claimed that the publications caused him

irreparable injury and damaged his hard-earned reputation.

He is specifically seeking an order awarding N1billion as

general damages against Metuh and PDP.

He is also seeking another order awarding additional N500

million as general damages jointly and severally against all the

three defendants, including ThisDay newspaper.

El-Rufai is also seeking the award for “the injury,

embarrassment and distress suffered in respect of the loss of

reputation and goodwill as a result of the malicious,

unwarranted and defamatory utterance against the person of

the plaintiff.” He also seeks for a written apology be made

published in the same medium as the defamatory statements.

The ex-minister equally wants the court to give an order of

perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from further

defaming him.

The case has been adjourned till June 5 for mention before

Justice Abubakar Talba.

Source: The