Governor Otti Demands ₦50bn from Toby Chuks for Defamation Over Facebook Post
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has issued a legal demand for a public apology, a retraction, and ₦50 billion in damages from Hon. Tobias Chukwudi Egeonu, also known as Hon. Toby Chuks, for an allegedly defamatory post on Facebook.
In a letter dated December 13, 2024, Otti’s legal counsel, Dr. Sonny Ajala, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, called the publication, titled “What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 1,” a “libelous attack from the pits of hell.” The post, which was published on Egeonu’s Facebook page on December 8, accused Governor Otti of corruption during his tenure as Group Managing Director of the defunct Diamond Bank and of mismanaging state funds since taking office as governor.
Ajala slammed the allegations as “patented falsehoods” that have caused Otti significant reputational damage and emotional distress. The lawyer stated that the post has led to “unquantifiable mental torture, depression, denigration, and corrosive erosion of reputation,” tarnishing Otti’s image among the public, the banking community, and the people of Abia State.
In the letter, the governor’s legal team demanded that Egeonu retract the defamatory post within seven days, posting a written apology both on his Facebook page and in four national newspapers—ThisDay, The Punch, The Nation, and The National Ambassador. Additionally, they are demanding ₦50 billion in damages for the harm caused by the post.
Failure to comply with the demands will result in legal action, the letter warns. Ajala highlighted the widespread circulation of the post, noting that many people had already read and commented on the defamatory publication across various platforms, including WhatsApp.
Governor Otti has firmly denied all the accusations, asserting that he has no criminal indictment, and has requested that Egeonu retract the defamatory publication and compensate him for the damages caused.
The letter also referenced a subsequent follow-up post, “What Alex Otti Cannot Destroy Does Not Exist: Vol. 2,” further amplifying the falsehoods against the governor.