A Kogi State High Court sitting in Lokoja has ordered Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to pay N1 billion in damages in a defamation suit filed by former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello.
The judgment was delivered by Justice A. S. Ibrahim in suit number HCL/16/2023, arising from comments made by the senator during a live interview on The Morning Show on November 4, 2022.
During the broadcast, the court noted that Akpoti-Uduaghan described the former governor as a “murderer,” “killer,” and a “terror to the people of Kogi State,” statements it ruled were damaging to Bello’s reputation and not backed by evidence presented in court.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Ibrahim held that the claims amounted to defamation and resolved all issues in the case in favour of the claimant. The court also issued a perpetual injunction restraining the senator, her representatives, and associates from making further defamatory remarks against Bello across all media platforms, including television and radio.
Meanwhile, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan has rejected the judgment and confirmed she will challenge it at the Court of Appeal. In a statement released in Abuja through her media aide, Mike Idoko, she insisted she would be pursuing an appeal against the ruling.
