Betta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation who is currently suspended, has taken action against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) due to what she believes are defamatory accusations made against her.
In a letter written by her legal representative, Chikaosolu Ojukwu, SAN, and addressed to the BBC offices in Abuja and London, titled ‘Request for immediate retraction of defamatory article published on BBC website against Dr. Betta Edu’, she claims that her reputation has been tarnished and she has suffered emotional distress as a result.
The letter expresses concern over an article published on the BBC website titled ‘Betta Edu Probe: Nigeria Recover $24m in Poverty Minister Investigation- EFCC’, which implies that N30bn has been recovered from Edu and that the 50 bank accounts associated with the funds are linked to her.
The letter also highlights that the article references her previous suspension in January over allegations of diverting $640,000 of public funds into a personal bank account.
It is important to highlight that our client’s alleged involvement in the corruption case has been described in a manner that assumes guilt without considering the principle of presumption of innocence, which is crucial in fair and unbiased reporting. The article was crafted recklessly, without giving our client the opportunity to respond to the allegations before its widespread publication, which clearly violates journalistic fairness and due process, and demonstrates a complete disregard for journalistic integrity and professionalism.
To clarify, our client has not been indicted or found guilty of any financial impropriety in relation to her role in the Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation Ministry in Nigeria. It is also important to note that no amount, including N30 billion, has been traced or recovered from our client’s bank accounts, and no proceeds of crime have been linked to her that would justify the defamatory article in question.
Following the publication of this scandalous article, our client has received numerous calls and messages from friends and associates expressing their shock and concern. The article has caused immeasurable damage to our client’s reputation, as well as psychological trauma and distress.
In light of the above, we demand that the BBC immediately remove the offensive article from its website and any other associated platforms. Additionally, we expect the BBC to issue an immediate and unqualified retraction of the article, as well as a public apology to our client for the false and defamatory content published. This retraction and apology must be given within 48 hours of receiving this correspondence.
