VeryDarkMan (VDM), the social media critic, has responded to the recent warrant of arrest issued by the chief magistrate court in Abuja for alleged criminal defamation of gospel singer Mercy Chinwo.
The arrest warrant was issued on Thursday after VDM failed to appear in court despite being summoned on March 5.
Deji Adeyanju, the activist’s lawyer, pleaded for reconsideration, assuring the court that he would personally present his client, but the magistrate rejected the request.
Reacting in an Instagram post on Friday, VDM argued that he is not afraid of getting arrested, alleging a plot by the “judiciary to shut down me down”.
The social media celebrity said he was surprised that he is being tried in the same court on four different cases.
He wondered why the judge ordered his arrest on the same day his case was brought to court.
VDM also alleged that officials involved in his legal case are colleagues of Chinwo and that there is a plan to arrest him at the airport upon his return to Nigeria.
“The courts have ordered my arrest. First things first, the judiciary cannot shut me down. A lot of you don’t know, but there’s a push for the judiciary to shut me down,” he said.
“However, I will resist it. Instead, I will expose all those people paying money for it. I will expose all of you—those forum-shopping judges and all those illegal orders.
“How can a lawyer have six cases in front of one magistrate in one day? On that same day, the judge ordered my arrest. My lawyer informed the court that I was not in Nigeria and that I have cases in the same court, yet I have never missed a day.
“In fact, I was in China when they filed the case. Despite this, they ordered my arrest while I was not even in the country.
“On the same day, another court in Nyanya issued an injunction preventing me from speaking about the case. The magistrate who ordered my arrest also issued an injunction against me discussing the case.
“The magistrate in Nyanya, who recently became a judge, issued an injunction based on a scanty affidavit. No reasonable person would give such an order based on that affidavit.
“I thought the National Judicial Council (NJC) had put a stop to ex parte orders. Why is this judge in Nyanya still doing it? Why are they trying to bypass the NJC’s directive? The judiciary cannot shut me down. Instead, I will expose all those paying for these illegal actions.
“They want the news. Their plan is to handcuff me if I come to Nigeria, so people will say, ‘Oh, Mercy has won’. But even if they handcuff me, it does not change the truth: there is an abuse of power and influence in this case. Why did they move the case from Lagos unless they were looking for a place where they have the upper hand?
“This is not a coincidence to me. The EFCC prosecutor has done two shows on YouTube with Mercy Chinwo’s husband…
“The zonal chairman, now a pastor at Redeemed Church, and the EFCC prosecutor both attended the opening of the branch together. They both attend Redeemed Church. This is not a coincidence.
“The judge who had previously handled the case recused himself after it was cast online. That judge, or an account registered in his name, followed Mercy Chinwo on Instagram. This is not a coincidence. There is an abuse of power here. I stand against oppression. Even if I come to Nigeria and they detain me, it doesn’t negate the truth.
“Did they take the case to a place where they have the upper hand? Yes. I am giving my fair comments. She brought the case online to gather sympathy and bash the guy. I saw the loopholes.
“Why did they cut and join the videos? Why did she bring Pastor Jerry Eze and Nathaniel Bassey into it? She lied in that video. There was never a news story claiming her child is not hers. Mercy, you are a liar. No matter how much you lie or use your influence, the truth remains the truth.”
BACKGROUND
VDM had accused Chinwo of diverting funds from shows without remitting them to her former label, owned by Ezekiel Onyedikachukwu.
He also claimed that the gospel singer violated contractual agreements with the label before parting ways.
Responding to the allegations, Chinwo, through her lawyer Pelumi Olajengbesi, filed a lawsuit against the social media critic, seeking N1.1 billion in damages.
She accused VDM of making “libelous, malicious, spiteful, malevolent, and grossly defamatory statements” that impugn her image.
The singer also demanded that he retract his statements, delete the alleged defamatory posts, and issue a public apology.
VDM, however, took to social media to share a snippet of his upcoming diss track against Chinwo.
The feud between Chinwo and Eezee began after she left the label.
She accused Onyedikachukwu of exploiting her and diverting approximately $345,000 from her digital platforms and events without disclosing the transactions and remitting her share.
Onyedikachukwu, popularly called EeZee Tee, denied the allegations, but Chinwo maintained that she was a victim of contract fraud.
The record label boss responded by calling for an audit amid allegations of financial misconduct.
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