Our attention has been drawn to several online publications by Mr. Douglas Ogbankwa relating to our report titled “EXCLUSIVE: SUPREME COURT SAYS MAIKYAU’S NBA C’TE APPOINTEE IS NOT A LAWYER.” While we had sought to ignore the wild allegations, the flurry of orchestrated publications lately has compelled us to set the records straight.

Aside from describing our report as “misconceived,” Mr. Ogbankwa has issued several public statements which sought to further impugn the report. More worrisome is that Mr. Ogbankwa has made baseless allegations which sought to portray our news blog and its esteemed President as having been procured by his perceived political detractors to malign him, and or having engaged in illegal activities. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In sundry posts which he personally made on social media platforms and published on at least one news blog, Mr. Ogbankwa stated that “I have seen the hatchet man’s job by Emeka Nwadike (sic) and City Lawyers (sic) to smear my image and reputation. A recent case of data invasion which is being investigated has revealed how Emeka Nwadike (sic) was compromised to do this report. Emeka Nwadike (sic) is a Cheap hatchet man, who has bit more than he can chew Legally.”

It is very instructive that this purported case of data invasion “revealed” the fanthom “compromise” barely 16 hours after the publication of our report. Mr. Ogbankwa may be invited shortly to show how he perhaps activated a petition to the security agencies at 12 noon on Thursday when our report was published and “revealed” a fanthom “compromise” at exactly 4:33 am on Friday!

In another report published on at least two news blogs, it was alleged that Mr. Ogbankwa “had filed a multi-billion naira suit against the said publication.” We note that we are yet to receive any court processes from Mr. Ogbankwa or his solicitors.

Mr. Ogbankwa last Sunday issued yet another statement which was published by sundry news blogs asserting that he was duly called to the Nigerian Bar, adding that “This reiteration has become apposite, due to the viral nature of the false reports spread by City Lawyers (sic) and their sponsors.”

He added: “but make no mistake about this, Whether the False Information Peddlers are brought to justice, or Justice is brought to the false information Peddlers, Justice will be done in this matter.” Mr. Ogbankwa did not explain what he meant by “Justice is brought to the false information Peddlers.”

For the avoidance of doubt, we state that CITY LAWYER was not procured to impugn Mr. Ogbankwa’s reputation. The allegations made against our news blog and its President, formerly an award-winning journalist, are shocking, unfair, reckless, and utterly baseless. Our news blog has always placed premium on the best ethical standards.

It is instructive that, not only did we not add to the contents of the Supreme Court letter, we indeed – and in the hallowed traditions of audi alteram partem and fair hearing – sought an interview with Mr. Ogbankwa which he eagerly granted. We then extensively projected Mr. Ogbankwa’s views and accompanying documents in the same news report, in his strenuous bid to blunt the Supreme Court letter. Indeed, in displaying good faith towards Mr. Ogbankwa, we voluntarily censored some of the statements he made during the interview.

Equally noteworthy is that Mr. Ogbankwa has made copious references to his longstanding practice as a lawyer as well as his service to sundry bar associations. What he has not done thus far is provide compelling evidence to dispel the kernel of our report which was based solely on the Supreme Court statement that “We have checked our records and the name DOUGLAS OGBANKWA cannot be found on the Rolls of Legal Practitioners kept in the Supreme Court of Nigeria.”

In fact, Mr. Ogbankwa, in putting his personal imprimatur on the Supreme Court statement and the CITY LAWYER report, wrote in another piece titled “A Narration By Douglas Ogbankwa Esq,” that “One Osaigbovo Aghatise – who works for Razaq Isenalumhe and has privilege (sic) information of Lawyers practising in Edo State, as a former Permanent Secretary of the NBA Benin Branch, has collected money from Douglas Ogbankwa to perfect his Deed Pool (sic) and other documents since 2021, but since he now works for Isenalumhe, he has been playing hide and seek, refusing to bring details of the perfection of Deed Pool (sic), saying “I will get to you “I will get to you”, showing that this a well orchestrated plan to pull him down.” Need we say more? As lawyers would say, res ipsa loquitur. This is moreso as Mr. Ogbankwa stated in yet another publication that he effected the Affidavit of Change of Name and newspaper publication in 2008, that is, 15 (fifteen) years ago!

Accordingly, we urge Mr. Ogbankwa to quit chasing shadows and abide by the unsolicited advice offered to him by the Supreme Court to wit: “If he has changed his name, he is expected to come along with a duly stamped deed poll and all the requirements for change of name in the Supreme Court.”

We ask Mr. Ogbankwa to henceforth cease and desist from his ill-advised and futile campaign of calumny against CITY LAWYER and its President. He is encouraged to look elsewhere – or perhaps inwards – for his perceived traducers.

Signed
MANAGEMENT

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