N500 MILLION NUJ SCAM: UZENDU, ABUJA COUNCIL CHAIRMAN GOES TO COURT

Chairman of the Abuja Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mr. Malachy Uzendu, yesterday filed a suit at an Abuja Chief Magistrates Court , asking his immediate-past predecessor, Mr. Abduljelil Adebayo to explain his claims that he (Malachy Uzendu), was involved in a N500 million scam.

Uzendu and the Council Secretary, Alhaji Lateef Ibrahim were accused by Messrs Adebayo and Chuks Ehirim of National Daily newspapers, of engaging in sundry crimes and financial impropriety since they (Uzendu and Ibrahim) took over the mantle of leadership nearly three years ago.

The allegations which emanated from a meeting of a “Concerned NUJ members Abuja Council” which took place last Saturday at a beer parlor saw Adebayo and Ehirim, two defeated candidates in the election that brought Uzendu and Ibrahim into office, vehemently calling the two council officers in unprintable names and insisting they have been involved in several financial crimes.

Though Uzendu and Ibrahim have been conducting congresses regularly, the last of such congresses which took on October 20 (last month), his accusers, some of who attended the congress in question insisted that it was not true.

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Information available to our reporters showed that all the allegation leveled against the council officials were untrue and indeed unfounded.

The suit filed at the Magistrate Court had Adebayo and Ehirim as co-defendants in the “Criminal Complaint brought pursuant to Section 143 (d) (e) of Criminal Procedure Code and Section 97 (2) and 394 of Penal Code Act.

In the suit, which filed yesterday, count one reads “that you Mr. Abduljelil Adebayo and Mr. Ehirim Chuks on or about the 25 th day of October, 2008 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this court, conspired together with persons now at large to defame Mr. Uzendu Malachy and injure his reputation as incumbent Chairman of Abuja Council of NUJ and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 97 (2) of the Penal Code Act.

“That you Abduljelil Adebayo and Mr. Ehirim Chuks on or about the 25 th day of October 2008 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this court printed a material headed as  “Communique issued at the end of a meeting by members of the NUJ Abuja Council held at the  council secretariat Utako, Abuja on October 25 th, 2008, by which you published the injurious matter”.

No date has been fixed for the hearing of the matter.