Cleric drags NAWOJ, FIDA to court over alleged defamation of character

A Cleric, Rev Isaac Newton, has dragged Nigeria Association of
Women Journalists (NAWOJ), International Federation of Women
Lawyers(FIDA), and 11 others to court over alleged defamation of
character.

In the suit filed in October 2018, at an Upper Area Court,
Kasuwan Nama in Jos, the cleric accused NAWOJ and others of
publishing news items on radio, television and social media,
linking him with sexual molestation of 20 female minors placed in
his care.

He was also accused of subjecting the minors to hard labour
under the supervision of males, in an orphanage he (accused)
ran.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the case had been
adjourned four times, due to protests by Messrs Joseph Danboyi and
Solomon Maren, the defense counsels, over improper service to their
clients.

The case, in one instance, was also adjourned following the
failure of the complainant to appear in court, a condition imposed
on him by the defendants “due to the gravity of the matter”.

When the case came up for hearing on Monday, two witnesses of
the complainant, Miss Patience Joseph and Mr Joseph Pam, former
residents of the orphanage, appeared before the court to give their
testimonies.

Pam, in his testimony, claimed that he first heard of the
accusations in the media.

According to him, one of the accused persons, Nicodemus Bawa,
organized a meeting in Jos for former residents of the orphanage,
to discuss reports of alleged sexual harassment by the cleric.

“I refused to partake in the discussions because it was not
true,” he told the court.

Joseph, on her part, alleged that Nicodemus bribed her to
testify that she left the centre because of alleged sexual assault
by the cleric.

The witness said that she left the facility because of pressure
from relations who wanted her to return home to take care of her
sick grandmother.

After listening to the witnesses, the Chief Magistrate, Mohammed
Yahaya, granted accelerated hearing for the case, but was forced to
adjourn till March 28 because of the valedictory session for
lawyers.

Defamation of character, a criminal offence under section 373 of
the criminal code, carries a one year imprisonment on
conviction.