Breaking: Natasha Scores Legal Win As Court Orders Substituted Service On Nwaebony

A Federal High Court sitting in the Federal Capital Territory has granted an order for substituted service on Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, who represents Ebonyi North, in a defamation case filed by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central.

Justice Angela Otaluka issued the order on Wednesday, following a motion ex parte brought by Akpoti-Uduaghan’s legal counsel, Yahuza Zakari. The motion requested the court’s permission to serve court documents on Nwaebonyi through alternative means, citing difficulties in personal service.

In his submission, Zakari argued that serving the Ebonyi senator personally had proven impractical. He therefore sought permission to serve the legal documents either through publication in a widely read national newspaper or via the Clerk of the National Assembly or the Senate.

He noted, “Serving the defendant by publication or through official channels within the National Assembly is most likely to bring the suit to his attention. This court has the inherent power to grant such an order depending on the circumstances, and it would serve the interest of justice.”

Granting the application, Justice Otaluka directed that Senator Nwaebonyi be served through publication in a national newspaper.

The lawsuit, marked CV/1359/2025, was filed in April 2025 by Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan in response to comments made by Senator Nwaebonyi during a live interview on Channels Television on March 6, 2025. During the program, Nwaebonyi allegedly made several damaging remarks, referring to the Kogi senator as a “gold digger,” a “habitual liar,” and a “habitual blackmailer.” He also claimed she was “a mother of six children from different men,” allegations Akpoti-Uduaghan described as entirely false and defamatory.

Akpoti-Uduaghan is seeking a declaration from the court that Nwaebonyi’s statements were malicious, defamatory, and injurious to her character. She asserts that the remarks caused her reputational damage and public embarrassment.

She is also asking the court to issue an injunction restraining Nwaebonyi from making further defamatory comments against her and demanding ₦5 billion in aggravated and exemplary damages as compensation for the harm she alleges was caused by the statements.