Fire For Fire: Apostle Suleiman Slams Keyamo With N1 Billion Defamation Claim, Keyamo Hits Back (DETAILS)

General Overseer of Omega Fire Ministries Worldwide, Apostle Johnson Suleman, has slammed Festus Keyamo, lawyer of his alleged mistress, Miss Stephanie Otobo, with a N1 billion defamation claim over alleged blackmail and injuries inflicted on his image through his purported media trial of the case involving him and Canada-based singer and stripper, Stephanie Otobo. But Keyamo would have none of that.

Apostle Suleiman’s demand also carries a threat to to drag Keyamo to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee “for infamous conduct” should he fail to comply with his demands which include a retraction of all publications, and an apology to be published on major social media networks. In the clergyman’s counsel’s letter, entitled: “Allegation of professional misconduct and unethical practices”, he also pointed out that Keyamo’s actions were inconsistent with Section 1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct For Legal Practitioners 2007. Among other things, he wrote:

“Sequel to our letter to you dated March 6, 2017, we have observed with shock and dismay your deliberate and relentless efforts to malign and convict our client through media trial. By your relentless media campaign, you are conducting yourself in a manner inconsistent with Section 1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct For Legal Practitioners 2007…In short, you have threatened and indeed executed your threat of conjuring, manufacturing and synthesising bogus and unverifiable exhibits in the social media and newspapers, all with a view to poison public opinion against our client and reduce his esteem and reputation in the eye of any reasonable man. Your attitude is also to ambush a fair trial while litigation is anticipated. This is contrary to S.33 of the Rules of Professional Conduct For Legal Practitioners 2007….Furthermore, you grossly and recklessly maligned our client, saying, “these men of God are not what they claim to be, we have a duty to protect the public. Many of them are fake and fraudsters. You will see the video very soon in the next few minutes.” True to your threat of trial publicity stunts, the video clips have flooded the social media networks….We believe your conduct is inconsistent with the virtues and rules of conduct of the legal profession. It smacks of indiscipline and disdain for the judicial process. Therefore, we demand a retraction of all your press statements and an apology to be published on the major social media networks….Also, we demand a compensation of N1bn for all the injuries inflicted on our client. We expect you to meet our demands within seven days from the date above written. Take notice that we shall drag you before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee for the infamous conduct if you fail to so do.”

Characteristically, Festus Keyamo, whose reputation for high profile controversial cases is legend, fired back with his own letter, accusing Apostle Suleiman of focusing on him rather than on Stephanie. Check out his reply:

“The attention of Festus Keyamo Chambers has been drawn to a series of press releases and letters by one Apostle Johnson Suleman (who claims to be a “man of God”) and his lawyers attacking the person of our Head of Chambers, Mr. Festus Keyamo in respect of the discharge of our professional duties to one of our clients, Miss Stephanie Otobo. Whilst our formal response to the ill-advised letter by his lawyers is on its way to him, we deem it necessary to make this release in response to the series of releases Apostle Suleman has recently made.

Firstly, Mr. Festus Keyamo is not even PERSONALLY INVOLVED in this matter. He has no personal interest in it at all. Upon accepting the brief of Miss Stephanie Otobo at the Lagos office, Mr. Keyamo, (who has been in the Abuja office all this while) instructed three of the lawyers in Lagos (including both undersigned) to handle the brief professionally.

Apart from an informal and friendly phone conversation Mr. Festus Keyamo had with a reporter in Punch Newspapers and one other blog about this matter, Mr. Keyamo has never personally signed or issued any letter or press release on this issue.

The lawyers in the Lagos office are working on this. So, it baffles us that Apostle Suleman and his aides have decided to drag Mr. Keyamo PERSONALLY into this issue. Mr. Keyamo never owed Apostle Suleman any professional duty and so was under no legal restriction to accept a brief against him.

Secondly, all the allegations of some imaginary grand conspiracy being perpetrated against Apostle Suleman are not only pathetic, but are ludicrous and a nonsensical smokescreen. We have the instruction of our client to ask Apostle Suleman the following questions:

(a) Whether it is the Hausa/Fulani herdsmen that instructed him to be paying millions into the account of our client who he calls a “stripper” all the way in Canada.

(b) Whether it is his special calling as a so-called “man of God” to be paying millions to strippers and prostitutes to leave their trade, when there are poor women and widows within his congregation in Nigeria that need help badly.

(c) Whether it is the Hausa/Fulani herdsmen that instructed him to be exchanging amorous text messages with a girl he calls “a stripper”. These text messages would all be investigated and revealed when full criminal investigations commence.

(d) Whether it is the Hausa/Fulani herdsmen that instructed him to be having Skype conversations with Miss Stephanie Otobo and to be requesting her to open her bare breasts to him.

(e) Whether it is the Hausa/Fulani herdsmen that told him to be exposing his private part to Miss Stephanie on Skype; which pictures are in our custody.

We make bold to say that when criminal investigations commence, all these text messages and pictures would be subjected to serious forensic analysis, and the truth would be established. The hotels they slept in and the evidence of their meetings in and out of this country would be revealed. The pitiable excuse of “photo-shop” has become a convenient escape route for all culprits caught on tape these days.

Finally, Mr. Festus Keyamo is not the problem of the ‘Apostle” gentleman. His problem is the little girl whom he thought he could easily take advantage of and destroy her life. Somehow, she has found the strength and the voice to fight back and this is where we are now. Other unfortunate victims of this same self-proclaimed “Man of God” are also in touch with us now and are also itching to tell their story, with proofs. Please, he should face the consequences of his “sins” and leave Mr. Keyamo alone.”

In the meantime, Miss Stephanie Otobo is having a field day granting damning interviews whose goals may look like what Apostle Suleiman is accusing Keyamo of orchestrating. But, as Celeb Police firmly believes, the truth will soon come out as both sides of the holy sex scandal lawyer up and deploy different legal weapons in their arsenal.

If we are to make you a jury in this case, what would your take be, do you think that this a case of cheap blackmail? Do think there’s a media trial of the clergyman going on? Do you believe Keyamo is trying to re-enact his infamous Friday case on Bola Ige’s murder? Or do you believe there are powerful people using Stephanie to get at the Apostle? You be the jury.

To guide your jury decision, this little piece of information may be vital. Keyamo is notorious for sensationally orchestrating a one-of-a kind guilty admission by one Friday in the murder case of one-time Attorney-General of Nigeria, Chief Bola Ige. Nothing came out of the case which he described as “the case of a a killer looking for a killer”. Nothing came out of it.