A former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has
demanded that the management of Media Trust Limited – publishers of Daily Trust
and other publications – enter into a negotiation with him for possible
settlement of N6bn for defamation of character.
Fani-Kayode said this in a letter addressed to the Managing
Director of Daily Trust, dated August 31, 2020 and titled, ‘Defamation of the
character of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode by Iliyasu Gadu.’
The letter, which was signed by the former minister’s
lawyer, Adeola Adesipe, was in response to an article titled, ‘FFK, the Drug
Addled Thug in Designer Wears’ dated August 30, 2020 and published by the
medium.
In the article, which was published in the newspaper, the
writer lambasted Fani-Kayode for his conduct during a Press conference in which
he described a Daily Trust reporter in Calabar, Eyo Charles, as ‘stupid’ after
the journalist asked question about the identity of persons “bankrolling” his current tour of
southern states.
Gadu, the writer of the article, claimed that Fani-Kayode,
who attended Cambridge University, was once “a drug addict” and had sought
rehabilitation in Ghana, but “till today has not been cured of the habit.”
In his pre-litigation letter, however, Fani-Kayode described
the article as libelous and demanded an apology from the newspaper, which must
be published in other national dailies.
The former minister also demanded that negotiation be
entered into for possible payment of N6bn due to the irreparable loss the
article had caused him.
It reads in part, “Be aware that our client has not only
suffered immeasurable loss of goodwill, he is currently confronted with
unbearable opprobrium by his fans, followers and colleagues across the globe.
“Our client is alive to his rights both in law and equity
but is disposed to an opportunity to undo the evil you have done by retracting
the said insalubrious remarks on the same platform it was published and
apologising to him in two other national dailies.
“You are also advised to enter into negotiations with us for
the sum of N6bn being a token amount for penitence as opposed to the magnitude
of infraction caused to our client’s nobility.”
The newspaper was given 14 days to comply or face legal
action.
Fani-Kayode also wrote a similar letter to Gadu, who
authored the article.
The former minister drew the ire of several Nigerians
recently after a viral video showed him talking down at a journalist, an
incident he has apologised for.
However, the Nigeria Union of Journalists, as well as many
other civil organisations, have continued to criticise Fani-Kayode, while many
reporters have boycotted his ongoing tour of the southern states.
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