Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has written a petition to the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, over and allegation of collecting N4billion from the suspended acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu.
DAILY NIGERIAN reports that Mr Magu is facing a presidential panel over corruption allegations as contained in a memo raised by the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.
The petition, written by Mr Osibanjo’s lawyer, Bayo Osipitan of Bayo Osipitan & Co., accused the publisher of Point Blank News, Jackson Ude, of fabricating a report claiming that Mr Magu had given the said amount of money to the VP.
In the petition dated July 8, 2020, and titled, ‘Criminal Defamation of the Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), GCON by Jackson Ude’, Mr Osinbajo said Mr Ude was in the habit of publishing malicious articles against his person.
He, therefore, called on the IGP to probe the blogger with a view to prosecuting him for criminal defamation.
The petition read in part, “These vicious and malicious publications are meant to achieve one objective only, to present to his readership and others (Nigerians and foreigners) that our client is a dishonest and disloyal public officer and consequently unfit for the position of Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria he is occupying.
“We are of the view that unless an action for criminal defamation is commenced against the daid Mr. Jackson Ude, he will continue to use his social media platform to publish materials that are false and criminally defamatory of our client’s reputation.
“In view of the above, we humbly request that you cause the above allegations made against our client to be investigated and if the suggested investigation confirms our complaint of the falsehood of these allegations, to initiate criminal proceedings pursuant to the provisions of Sections 391-395 of the Penal Code Act for criminal defamation against the said Jackson Ude.”
