An Ikeja High Court has set April 16 as the D-day to rule on a suit filed by Nigerian pastor, Dr Chris Okafor, against Nollywood actress Doris Ogala and two others.
The other defendants in the suit marked ID/14399GCMW/2026 are a social media influencer, Martins Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), and one Kelvin Emmanuel. Okafor named Ogala, VDM, and Emmanuel as first, second, and third defendants, respectively.
We gathered that when the case was called on Wednesday, Okafor’s counsel, Mr Ife Ajayi, told the court that all parties had been duly served, according to the proof of service by the court’s Sheriff. Ajayi then sought an extension of time to tidy up preliminary objections.
Ogala’s lawyer, Mr Nzeakor Atulomah, fired back with a notice of preliminary objection dated Jan. 29. Atulomah argued that the claimant’s writ of summon “did not comply with Section 97 of Sheriff and Civil Process Act, which was mandatory,” and urged the court to strike out the suit.
He further contended that service on the first defendant was done out of jurisdiction. “The first defendant is not based in Lagos. The claimant even said that all the defendants are based in Abuja and not Lagos,” Atulomah stressed.
Okafor’s counsel countered with a Feb. 10 affidavit, asking the court for leave to amend the filed processes, insisting that “the claimant had filed a proper writ of summon from the point of law.”
After hearing submissions from both sides, Justice Akintunde Savage adjourned the matter to April 16 for ruling on the preliminary objections.
Earlier, on Feb. 2, the court had granted leave to serve a notice of preliminary objection via electronic means on the defendants. On Jan. 22, it also issued an interim order barring the defendants from mentioning Okafor, his church, or ministry on any platform, pending the substantive suit’s outcome.
The restraining order, issued following an ex-parte application under Order 43 Rules 1, 2, and 7 of the High Court of Lagos State (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019, prevents the defendants and their agents from publishing or releasing any alleged private materials, including chats, texts, pictures, images, or videos relating to the claimant.
The court also prohibited the defendants from publicly displaying Okafor’s name, images, videos, or the name of his church, Grace Nation International (also called Liberation City), and from releasing any material purportedly intended to blackmail or extort money from him, pending final determination of the suit.
