Nollywood actress Halima Abubakar has been ordered by a Federal Capital Territory High Court to pay a fine of ₦10 million for publishing defamatory statements about Apostle Johnson Suleman, the Senior Pastor and General Overseer of Omega Fire Ministries International.
The judgement, delivered by Justice Enobie Obanor, stemmed from accusations by Apostle Suleman that Abubakar had made derogatory comments against him on her Instagram page, which were subsequently disseminated by various blogs and newspapers.
The cleric specifically said Abubakar accused him of being a womaniser and diabolical, among others.
Despite being given the opportunity to defend herself, Abubakar failed to do so, leading to the court’s ruling in favor of Apostle Suleman.
The court found the statements published by Abubakar to be false, malicious, and defamatory to the reputation of the clergyman.
The judgement partly reads, “The statements published by the defendant against the claimant on her Instagram handle, @halimabubakar, falsely and maliciously written and published to the general public, are defamatory of the person of the claimant.
The sum of N10,000,000 only to the claimant as aggravated and exemplary damages for libel contained in the publication of the defendant against the claimant on her Instagram handle, @Halimabubakar and caused to be published in several blogs.”
Additionally, she is prohibited from making any further publications regarding Apostle Suleman.