By Jimitota Onoyume

Warri: Prominent Ijaw leader , Chief Lucky Akara Gbeneyei has among other things demanded N50 bn, apology over some publications in the Vanguard newspaper around his status as a Chief, saying he had handed those behind the publications 48 hours to comply with his demands .

Addressing journalists in Warri ,Delta state , yesterday , Gbeneyei said in a letter to those behind the publications through his Counsel, O S. Ugwu Esq he made it clear that he would not hesitate to take further steps within the orbit of the law if they failed to comply within the 48 hours handed them through their Counsel

The letter from his Counsel made available to newsmen with the heading ” Re Gbeneyei not titled Chief in Ogulagha kingdom: Demand for public apology and payment of damages for your mindless repeated and disrespectful reference to a government recognized and registered chief Lucky Akara Gbeneyei as Mr Lucky Akara Gbeneyei in your Vanguard publication of 9th and 20th June , 2021 ….. Rejoinder to your demand for apology in your reply to our letter “, reads in parts :

“We are Solicitors to registered and High Chief Lucky Akara Gbeneyei hereinafter referred to as our Client on whose firm and unequivocal instructions we write to you.
Our unequivocal instruction is as hereunder stated “

“Our office received your letter dated the 13th day of July , 2021 and addressed to Timipre Roland Esq of our law.firm.in which you replied to our letter dated the 29th day of June, 2021 . We have critically analyzed your said letter so as to ascertain the issues of justification you raised in same, counter demand for a letter of apology to your Client and damages for libel and with the firm instruction of our Client we thus reply”

“That our Client still stands by his demand for a letter of apology from your client for libel against him by virtue of your client’s defamatory publication of 9th day of June and 20th day of June, 2021. Your client’s alleged ignorance of the fact that our Client holds a Chieftaincy title from another community other than his own community is the more reason your Client should have been more cautious with her actions.”

“That contrary to paragraph 1 (e) of your letter, we hereby state that the repeated use of the word Mr in your client’s publications of 9th and 20th day of June , 2021 was deliberate and maliciously calculated at belittling our Client who has been a Chief since 2003. The said publications were procured to make our Client appear like an impostor in the eye of the public and that is the reason your client stated in the publication of 20th day of June 2021, that “it is offensive and sanctionable (sic) for any indigene of Ogulagha kingdom to parade or impersonate as a titled Chief whereas he or she is not conferred the Ogulagha kingdom traditional title” as though Ogulagha kingdom is the only kingdom that confers Chieftaincy title on her indigenes in Delta state and or Nigeria “

“That the surprise expressed in paragraph 1(c) of your reply to our Client’s letter is the exact reason we referred to your client’s action as mindless . Your client’s haste to belittle our Client in the eyes of the public precluded her from calling her subject (our Client) to ascertain whether he holds any Chieftaincy title from any other kingdom other than Ogulagha kingdom or not. Our Client insists that your client’s malicious reference to him as Mr in her twin publications of 9th and 20th of June , 2021 is mindless and highly unwarranted.”

In addition to the foregoing, we add that we equally checked out the meaning of the word mindless and we found out that the word simply means ” acting or done without justification and with no concern for the consequences”. The synonyms of the word ” mindless ” include indifferent to, heedless of, unaware of , unmindful of, careless etc. Your client’s haste to caution our Client on pages of Vanguard newspapers of 9th and 20th June ,2021 without inquiries is the height of indifference to our Client’s reputation.

That contrary to your assertion in paragraph 4 of your letter of 13th day of July , 2021 , we state that the issue as to whether your client is a Justice of the Peace or not is not in contention or dispute here. We simply called him what he called himself in his publication of 9th day of June, 2021. We are at a loss as to how your client Chief Prefugha Karawei wants to be addressed, in the publication of 9th June 2021, he simply referred to himself as Chief Prefugha Karawei and in another of 20th June , 2021 he addressed himself as Chief Prefugha Karawei Justice of the Peace unlike our Client who is deliberate and precise on how he wants to be called and or addressed.

“In the light of the aforesaid , our firm insists that your client forthwith write a letter of apology within 48 hours of your receipt of this letter to our Client through your office and also pay the sum of fifty billion naira as damages to our Client for the mindless and repeated reference to him as Mr Lucky Akara Gbeneyei in your client’s twin publications of 9th and 20th of June , 2021 designed to lower and ridicule his reputation in the eye of the general public including the people of Operemor kingdom of Burutu local government area , Delta state, Nigeria who conferred Chieftaincy upon him since 2003.”

“Take note that should your client ignore our demands aforesaid ,we shall take the appropriate legal steps to obtaining a just remedy for the wrong done to Chief Lucky Akara Gbeneyei by your client without further recourse to you and or your client.”