A High Court sitting in Lokoja has ordered Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to pay ₦1 billion in damages after ruling in favour of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello in a long-running defamation suit.
The judgment, delivered by Justice A. S. Ibrahim and contained in a Certified True Copy dated April 23, 2026, followed proceedings in suit number HCL/16/2023. The court held that the evidence presented supported the claimant’s case on the balance of probabilities.
In his ruling, the judge found that comments made by the senator during a November 4, 2022 interview on Arise Television’s The Morning Show were defamatory and injurious to Bello’s reputation. The court noted that the statements in question included allegations describing the former governor as a murderer and individual linked to violent conduct, which it said were not justified by evidence.
Justice Ibrahim further issued a perpetual injunction restraining the defendant, her agents, and associates from making or repeating similar statements across any media platform, including television and radio.
Beyond the monetary award, the court emphasized that the defamatory remarks had caused reputational harm, thereby justifying the substantial damages granted in favour of the claimant.
The suit was initiated by Yahaya Bello, who alleged defamation of character. His legal team maintained that the case was properly filed and not an abuse of court process, countering arguments raised by the defence challenging jurisdiction.
Although the defence team, led by Senior Advocate Johnson J. Usman, had argued that the court lacked jurisdiction, the trial court ruled otherwise. The decision was later upheld by the Court of Appeal in case number CA/ABJ/CV/626/2024, which dismissed the appeal as lacking merit and confirmed the trial court’s authority to hear the matter.
With the appellate court’s affirmation, the ruling has now placed final judicial weight on the decision, bringing a major legal battle between both parties to a decisive conclusion. GWG.
