The N5bn defamation suit by Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, against a blogger, Sir Don Ubani, continued on Monday before Hon. Justice N. K. Nwosu-Iheme of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Abuja.
The matter, marked FCT/HC/CV/4474/2024, came up for hearing with the cross-examination of Otti’s first witness, Arc. Uche Jude Uche, who testified on behalf of the governor.
Ubani, the defendant, was present in court with his counsel, while the witness was cross-examined by the defence on the nature of his relationship with Governor Otti and his authority to represent him in the suit.
During proceedings, Uche confirmed to the court that he has the consent of the governor to represent him in the matter, adding that he has known Otti for 47 years.
He, however, volunteered that the claimant’s mandate to him was not written.
When asked by the defence counsel if he was aware of the claimant’s net worth before and after becoming a governor, the witness replied in the negative.
After the cross-examination, counsel to the claimant, Dr Sonny Ajala, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), informed the court that there was no re-examination of the witness.
He requested an adjournment to enable him to assess his case and possibly call other witnesses for the claimant.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme thereafter adjourned the matter to January 20, 2026, for continuation of the hearing.
The lawsuit resulted from a 2024 publication by the defendant titled “Governor Alexander Otti Of Abia State Should Be Clapped For,” in which Ubani alleged that the governor had acquired two hotels in Umuahia through proxies.
Ubani wrote: “In this instance, the Governor has, through his proxies, bought two near-moribund hotels in Umuahia. Comfort Hotel is currently undergoing a very remarkable renovation. The luxurious Maget Hotel is now a prized possession of the Governor.”
He further accused the governor of “wanton land grabbing” in Umuehim and Umuguru villages within the Ehi Na Uguru Autonomous Community, Nvosi, in the Isialangwa South Local Government Area.
Ubani added, “Here, therefore, reminds readers of the saying about leadership. A leader is not the one who does the greatest. But with what Governor Otti has done at Umuehim, Umuguru and the two hotels at Umuahia, one doubts if Governor Alexander Otti has not done the greatest.”
Governor Otti had denied the allegations and instructed his lawyers at Deeplaw Associates, led by Dr Ajala, to take legal action against his accuser. In a letter dated October 2, 2024, and addressed to Ubani, the legal team described the publication as “satanic and defamatory”.
The letter stated: “Governor Otti has nothing to do with Comfort Hotel, and the ‘luxurious Maget Hotel’ in Umuahia, Abia State that you falsely alleged in your online publication are now ‘pride possession of the Governor.’”
According to Otti’s lawyers, the publication was designed to “destroy and rubbish” the governor’s image among stakeholders in the banking sector, his constituents, Labour Party leadership, and the general public.
The governor had given Ubani seven days to retract the report, publish a written apology on his Facebook page and blog, and place the apology in ThisDay, Punch, The Nation, and National Ambassador or face legal action.
When the defendant failed to comply, Otti filed the N5bn defamation suit and is also seeking N150m as the cost of the suit.
At the resumed hearing on April 8, 2025, the court overruled an objection by Ubani’s counsel, S. M. Oluebube, regarding the admissibility of certain documents tendered by the claimant through the same witness, Arch. Uche.
The documents included the defendant’s October 6, 2024, publication titled “No lawyer from Governor Otti has served Sir Don Ubani any notice” and a report published by NEWSNGRon the same date titled “Lawyer Counters Blogger’s Claim of Not Receiving Gov. Otti’s Libel Notice.”
Justice Nwosu-Iheme, in a bench ruling, held that the documents met the requirements of relevance and admissibility and directed the claimant’s counsel to provide a properly ordered list of the admitted exhibits for record-keeping.
The court had earlier granted leave for Governor Otti to serve Ubani with court papers via email following the blogger’s failure to respond to a formal demand for retraction and apology.
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