Three former Managing Directors (MDs) of Nigerian refineries have threatened to sue a prominent media house, demanding N50 billion as aggravated damages for alleged defamation and libel.
The three are Mr Ibrahim Onoja, former MD of the Port Harcourt Refining Company; Mr Efifia Chu, former MD of the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Dr Mustafa Sugnugun, former MD of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company.
Counsel to the complainants, Reuben Atabo, SAN, in a letter addressed to the newspaper, sought the immediate withdrawal of the said defamatory publication from all its online and print platforms within five days of receiving the letter.
The letter, dated May 5, was couriered to the head office of the newspaper in Lagos, and made available to newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja.
It was titled: “Re: Your False Misleading and Defamatory Publication of 3rd May, 2025 Captioned: ‘Authorities Trace N80bn to Ex-MD as $3bn Fraud Rocks Nigerian Refineries’ — Demand for Retraction, Public Apology and Damages for Libel.’”
“Our clients’ attention has been drawn to a grossly misleading and factually baseless publication made by your newspaper on 3rd day of May 2025.
“The said publication falsely claims, among other damaging imputations, that our clients have been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in relation to an alleged mismanagement of 2.96 billion dollars allocated for refinery rehabilitation.
“That authorities have traced 80 billion to the personal accounts of ‘a recently sacked Managing Director’, and that all the former MDs, including our clients, are under investigation for fraud.”
Atabo said contrary to the report, only Dr Sugungun, the ex-MD of Kaduna Refinery was invited by the EFCC purely for routine questioning and that “he was never detained as no evidence of wrongdoing was found against him.”
He said neither Chu nor Onoja was invited, interrogated or investigated by the commission or any security agency in respect of the allegations mentioned in the publication.
“There is no truth whatsoever to the claim that N80 billion or any amount has been traced to the personal accounts of any of our clients.
“No criminal charges have been filed against our clients in relation to the refineries’ rehabilitation or any other matter whatsoever.
“It was only in the evening of Sunday, long after your publication, that the EFCC extended invitations to Onoja, Chu, Tijani and Ademoye, requesting them to appear before the Special Duty Committee 2 of the EFCC on the 8th day of May, 2025.”
“It is therefore shocking and malicious that your newspaper chose to recklessly lump our clients into what can best be described as a fabricated scandal, tarnishing their hard-earned reputations and portraying them to the entire world as corrupt public officials and criminals.
“Your publication has subjected our clients to public opprobrium, hatred, ridicule, odium and grave reputational and professional damage based on falsehoods with no factual foundation whatsoever.
“Moreover, the spurious allegations spurned against our clients are capable of brewing hatred and attack by members of the public against them.
“There is no doubt that Nigerians are at the moment facing serious economic challenges, particularly with respect to the availability and affordability of fuel,” he said.
Atabo, however, said that attributing these hardships and challenges to their clients was uncalled for.
He said the report was an attempt at lowering the reputation of their clients who rose through the ranks to the peak of their careers in the oil and gas industry.
The lawyer, therefore, sought for a publication of “an unreserved apology and full retraction of the defamatory story in at least five widely read national dailies in Nigeria and five international media platforms to undo the global reputational harm caused to our clients.
“That The Punch Newspaper pays our clients the sum of N50,000,000,000 (fifty billion naira) as aggravated damages for defamation and libel.”
Atabo threatened that if the newspaper failed to comply within five days of receipt of the letter, they would commence legal proceedings against the organisation both in Nigeria and in appropriate foreign jurisdictions.
(NAN)
