Chief Victor Iyanam v. Andchief Victor Iyanam (2024)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

PETER CHUDI OBIORAH, JCA (Delivering the leading judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of the High Court of Akwa Ibom State sitting at Uyo in suit No. HU/245/2016 Coram Judice, Hon. Justice Winifred I. A. Effiong delivered on the 25th October, 2019.

The appellant and the 1st respondent maintain a banker-customer relationship. The 1st respondent caused a publication to be made in the 2nd respondent of 26th May, 2016 a list of loan defaulters to the bank which showed the name of the appellant as No. 26 on the list with an unpaid status of N11,605,566.40. The appellant took umbrage at the publication which he claimed defamed his reputation and sued the respondents for libel.

The appellant sought the relief of:

The total sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira) as General and Exemplary damages for libel; unreserved apology from the defendants for the libel contained in the Punch Newspapers on page 32 of Thursday May 26, 2016 in very wide circulation in Nigeria; cost of this action to the tune of N1,000,000.00 (One Million Naira).

The respondents, as defendants, filed their statement of defence to the suit raising the defence of justification and also specifically incorporated a counter-claim from the 1st respondent in terms of:

The sum of N13,299,023.40 (Thirteen Million, Two Hundred and Ninety Nine Thousand, Twenty-Three Naira, Forty Kobo) being plaintiffs unrepaid loan to the 1st defendant plus the accrued interest as at the 30th day of September, 2016 and the sum of N2,000,000.00 (Two Million Naira) being the cost of this counter claim.

With pleadings duly exchanged, the trial went on with the appellant calling three witnesses and tendering certain documentary evidence. The respondents called one witness in defence of the suit and proof of the counter-claim.

At the end of the trial, the lower court dismissed the appellant’s claim and entered judgment in favour of the 1st respondent in the sum of N13,299,023.40 being the appellant’s unpaid loan plus interest and N100,000.00 as cost of the action.

The appellant was displeased with the judgment and has challenged same based on five (5) grounds of appeal found at pages 431 – 436 of the record of appeal. The record of appeal was transmitted to this court on 7/1/2020 and the appellant filed his brief of argument on 5/2/2020. The respondents brief was filed on 6/10/2020 and regularized by the court on 2/11/2022. The appellant also filed his reply brief on 21/2/2023 which was regularized on 10/10/2023 during the hearing of this appeal.

Issues for determination

The appellant formulated three issues for determination, namely:

1) Whether upon rejecting the statement of account sought to be tendered by the 1st respondent pursuant to section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011, there was any valid evidence with which the learned trial Judge could have come to the decision that the appellant was indebted to the 1st respondent. (Grounds 1 and 2)

2) Whether there was any evidence before the learned trial Judge enabling him to arrive at a decision whether the plaintiff/appellant received the amount of money claimed as owing to the 1st respondent or at all. (Ground 3)