21st May, 2025
Azeez Folorunso
A Lagos High Court has ordered a social media celebrity, Mr Martins Vincent Otse, a k a VDM to pay a cost of N200,000 as the court dismissed the preliminary objections he filed against the N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira ) defamation suits by human rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana, SAN and his son, Mr Folarin Falana, aka Falz.
The claimants in the suit accused VDM of character defamation contained in the Defendant’s video publication of September 24, 2024, on his Instagram.
Justice Folaranmi A. Azeez who delivered rulings in the preliminary objections filed by VDM against the two suits filed by the duo of Femi Falana and Folarin Falana, also ordered him to pay 100,000 each for Femi Falana’s and Folarin Falana’s suit.
Justice Azeez also directed the defendant to immediately file his defence to the two suits brought against him by the Claimants.
Though, at today’s proceeding, Femi Falana was physically absent, but represented by his counsels, Ernest Olawanle and Femi Akinyemi, while the
second Claimant in one of the suits, Mr Folarin Falana, aka Falz, was in court. Also VDM who was absent was represented by his counsel, Mr. Marvin Omorogbe.
The Claimants, Falana, SAN and his son, Folarin in the two different suits have dragged the social media influencer to court accusing him of character assassination, stating that he should purge himself of the accusations by apologising and refrain from further publications.
According to the suits, the Falanas prayed the court to “restrain VDM grom further tarnishing their image by publishing the same/similar words of and concerning the Claimant.”
Beside, they urged the court to declare that the publication of the Defendant made on September 24, 2024, on his Instagram handle: @verydarkblackman wherein he specifically targeted the Claimants is libelous, Injurious, derogatory, scandalous and defamatory.
They also asked the social media influencer to pay the sum of N500,000,000.00 (Five Hundred Million Naira Only) each, amounting to One Billion Naira for defamation of character contained in the Defendant’s video publication of September 24, 2024, on his Instagram handle @verydarkblackman. :
The duo of Femi and Folarin also prayed for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendant, his agents or servants or otherwise from further publishing or causing to be published the said or similar words defamatory to the Claimant.
In addition they urged the court to grant an order “directing the Defendant to publish an apology to the Claimant on all his social media handles/pages for the defamatory words contained in the video complained of and in one National Daily Newspaper.”
The Defendant (VDM) had filed a preliminary objection praying the Court for an order dismissing the suits filed by both Femi and Folarin Falana for want of jurisdiction.
He argued that the Lagos High Court lacks jurisdiction to superintendent over the case in the ground that the alleged offences were commited outside jurisdiction of the Lagos State High court.
However, the Claimants who are Respondents in opposing the preliminary objection, filed a counter affidavit and a written address. They urged the court to dismiss VDM’s application.
After the court’s ruling, Justice Azeez adjourned the matter for mention as well as to enable the Defendant to file his defence to the case of defamation levied against him.
Before now, another state high court presided over by Justice Mathias Dawodu on April 15th struck out a preemptive action filed by the Claimants, hinging his ruling on the pendency of the substantive case pending before another state high court.
On that day the matter came up before the court for hearing of Preliminary Objections filed against the Claimants initial pre-emptive application granted on the 14th of October 2024.
In compliance with the order of court granted on the 14th of October 2024, the Claimants filed the substantive suit pending before Hon. Justice F. Azeez of the High Court of Lagos, sitting at Ikeja.
However, Otse aka VDM filed a Notice of preliminary objection, alleging multiplicity of action over an expired pre-emptive application.
In his application, VDM filed a process for a stay of proceedings alongside his preliminary application but the court in its wisdom the court struck out the application on the ground that there was a substantive matter pending before another state high court.
At the proceedings on the 15th April 2025, Justice Dawodu, the court held that the matter before it is spent and has become academic exercise.
The court held that “the matter can no longer stand because it has no legs and therefore, sustaining the matter amounts to a waste of precious judicial time.”
Consequently, the court struck out the Preliminary objection.
