Defamation allegation: Soludo rejects Ekwunife’s apology, describes it waste bin fabrication

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By Madu Obi

Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State and his wife, Dr. Nonye Soludo, have dismissed as “another fabrication” the apology letter reportedly credited to Senator Uche Ekwunife over her alleged defamatory remarks against them.

In a statement signed by the governor's Senior Special Assistant on New Media, Dr Ejimofor Opara, the governor said the apology did not emanate from the former lawmaker and therefore lacked credibility.

The statement titled “Sen. Ekwunife’s Purported Apology: Another Fabrication Fit for the Waste Bin,” said the unsigned press release said to have come from the “Ekwunife Campaign Organization” was suspicious, misleading, and inadequate.

According to Opara, there is no such campaign body since Ekwunife has a joint ticket with the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the November 8 Anambra election.

The statement read in part: “The publication purporting to be an apology for the defamatory statements made against the governor and his wife personally by Senator Ekwunife does not appear to have emanated from the Senator herself, given that her defamatory statements were made directly via recorded video and leaked audio conversation.

The so-called apology never referenced Madam Ekwunife’s initial video and audio, but instead focused on an unsigned article. This only points to her complicity, directly or indirectly, as the source of the article. It implies that no genuine apology was intended or tendered.

Any contrite apology must follow a personal and direct retraction of her defamatory statements. Slander or libel directly made by an individual cannot be vicariously dismissed by any agent or proxy.”

Opara insisted that "any retraction or apology must come directly from Senator Ekwunife, using the same channels through which the offensive remarks were made."

Recall that the state's First Lady, Dr. Nonye Soludo, had earlier challenged Senator Ekwunife to clear herself on two issues: first, to swear an oath before the Blessed Sacrament affirming fidelity to her marriage; and second, to subject her children to a DNA test, alongside the Soludos’ own children, to disprove infidelity allegations.

Describing the apology as “another unsubstantiated social media gossip,” the Soludo administration said it would proceed as though the document never existed, while still demanding a clear and unambiguous retraction from Senator Ekwunife herself.