Two employees of Rev. Father (Prof) Emmanuel Edeh, the spiritual director of the Catholic Prayer Ministry of the Holy Spirit in Elele, Rivers State, have filed separate lawsuits in the High Court of Rivers State, Isiokpo Judicial Division, against three of Fr. Edeh’s siblings. The plaintiffs are Rev. Sister Annette Ezekwem, a member of the ministry and Deputy Vice Chancellor of Madonna University, and Professor Martin Anagboso.
Also named in the suits are three media houses: Punch Newspapers, African Examiner, and Everyday News, for publishing a petition written by Barrister Olu Omotayo, a human rights lawyer, on behalf of Fr. Edeh’s siblings, addressed to the Director General of the DSS and the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu. The plaintiffs allege that the publications are defamatory.
Rev. Sister Ezekwem serves as the Special Adviser on Student Affairs to Rev. Fr. Edeh, who is the proprietor of Madonna University.
The defendants in the lawsuit include Fr. Edeh’s immediate younger brother, Chief Stephen Edeh of Gold Transport Ltd, Architect John Paul Edeh, and Mrs. Maria Omego-Edeh, the former Managing Director of Mayfresh Mortgage Bank Ltd.
The lawsuits filed by the plaintiffs are: Rev. Sister Annette Ezekwem vs. Chief Stephen Edeh and Others, Suit No. IHC/296/CS/2024; and Professor Martin Anagboso vs. Chief Stephen Edeh and Others, Suit No. IHC/297/CS/2024. Both suits are represented by their lawyer, Chief Arthur Obi Okafor, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
The plaintiffs are seeking several reliefs from the court, including:
A. 5,000,000,000 Naira (Five Billion Naira) only.
B. An injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, or any associates from further publishing the alleged defamatory statements.
In their claims, the two plaintiffs assert that the petition penned by Olu Omotayo, Esq. on behalf of Fr. Edeh’s siblings is defamatory against them personally.
In his petition, Omotayo alleged that Anagboso, Rev. Sister Ezekwem, and their associates exploited Fr. Edeh’s advanced age to unilaterally remove the shareholdings of Fr. Edeh’s siblings from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) without their consent.
Additionally, Omotayo accused them of tampering with shareholding records at Mayfresh Mortgage Bank Ltd, as Fr. Edeh’s siblings are the principal shareholders vocalising demands for the repayment of over 4 billion Naira in loans obtained by Madonna University from the bank.
Established in 1993 as an investment by the Edeh family, Mayfresh Mortgage Bank Ltd was incorporated with Rev. Father (Prof) Emmanuel Edeh and his siblings as the initial directors.
It has been reported that the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, referred the matter to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for investigation, which is currently looking into the alleged unlawful alteration of shares at the Corporate Affairs Commission.
