THE NIGERIAN OBSERVER FACES LIBEL AS FAMILY EMAILS A CEASE & DESIST LETTER

The Nigerian Observer is a daily newspaper published in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria since 1968 by the Bendel Newspapers Company Limited (BNCL) and is owned by the Edo State Government. BNCL is the sole publisher of the OBSERVER titles in Nigeria.

The online newspaper version of the BNCL, The Nigerian Observer News – with the online identification: nigerianobsevernews.com is facing an impending defamation lawsuit as the Egirani Family of Anyama in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, with their matriarch, who is domiciled in Abuja, through one of her sons revealed to NND that the family has emailed a cease and desist letter to the Benin-based newspaper for a libelous online publication.

The Bayelsa family was startled by an online publication with the caption: CURBING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN THE SOCIETY which claimed that Mrs. Daisy Egirani the wife of one of the matriarch’s sons, who died last year told the online news platform that she was tortured and physically abused by the Egirani Family. According to the online report, she has a 12 year old daughter, and after the death of her husband, her husband’s elder brothers and uncle told her that her daughter and only child must follow tradition, that is to get married at the tender age of twelve (12) years because she is not a male child; also, the mother, Daisy, must get married to the husband’s eldest brother because she did not bear him a male child.

The Nigerian Observer online opinion report claimed that her husband’s properties were forcefully taken from her. According to the report, a meeting was scheduled for 17th July 2021 for the resolution of the matter but it ended in a stalemate. Thereafter, her husband’s brothers beat the day light out of her and threw her out of the house.

The family members were shocked and appalled by the online publication. They said nothing like was published in the online newspaper is true or remotely within their comprehension. The family said to NND that the lady in question, their in-law daughter fabricated the whole story for some ulterior motive because her husband who died last year was given a befitting burial in Abuja. Moreover, her family from Kogi State and the aggrieved family from Bayelsa State, both in-law families never met for any meeting whatsoever; the last togetherness was in Benin City when their late son got married to the lady about 13 years ago.

Why their in-law daughter, Mrs. Daisy Egirani, chose to produce a photo of herself in a battered state, told fictitious stories to the two reporters of the online publication, and how, without any verification, contacting the Egirani family to ascertain the facts or conducting appropriate investigative journalism, the nigerianobservernews.com on its own volition went ahead to publish – is what the family cannot fathom.

According to the Egirani family, their cease and desist letter is demanding that the online publisher pull the publication down and retract the false publication – in seven days – which publication they say, is fake news. At the time of publishing this news report, it appeared that the alleged libelous publication had been pulled down from BNCL’s website.