Ifedayo Olarinde, or Daddy Freeze, is a well-known Nigerian on-air personality. He was fined ₦5 million for adultery by the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt.
Daddy Freeze was forced to pay ₦5 million by the High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on February 18, 2021, for his adultery with Benedicta Elechi. Paul Odekina, who was Elechi’s spouse at the time of the affair, was ordered to receive this money.
The court’s judgment stated, “The sum of ₦5,000,000 is awarded against Ifedayo Olarinde (the 2nd Cross Respondent to the Cross Petition) as damages for depriving the Cross Petitioner of the amiable consort of his wife (Petitioner/1st Cross Respondent) and for injury suffered as a result of his adultery with the Petitioner/Cross Respondent.”
In addition, because of her extramarital affair with Daddy Freeze, the court also declared Benedicta’s marriage to Paul null and void.
Daddy Freeze filed an appeal with the appellate court because he was dissatisfied with the ruling of the High Court. His principal points of contention on appeal were that Order 7 Rule 2 of the Trial Court’s Rules had been broken by Odekina’s failure to physically seek to serve him before requesting substituted service.
In addition, he contended that non-service went against the natural justice principles and that the alleged alternate means of service—that is, by courier—was ineffectual, as the affidavit of service proved.
A three-member panel consisting of Justices Abubakar Talba, Danlami Senchi, and Hannatu Balogun denied Daddy Freeze’s appeal due to lack of merit, according to the Certified True Copy of the judgment dated June 26, 2024, that our correspondent was able to secure on Friday.
The appellant should have submitted a counter-affidavit against the affidavit of service and then sought to set aside the trial court’s verdict, the court decided, if he wished to overturn the judgment due to non-service.
The judgment read in part: “Affidavit evidence can only be countered by a Counter Affidavit. As such, I found the procedure adopted by the Appellant alien to our jurisprudence.”
It continued, “Where the Appellant wants the judgment of the trial court to be set aside for non-service, he ought to have approached the trial court by filing a Counter affidavit against the affidavit of service he seeks to set aside and consequently set aside the judgment of the trial court. Thus, as it is in the instant appeal, there is nothing filed by the Appellant to counter the affidavit of service of the Process Server filed in.
“Hence, therefore, I resolved the sole issue for determination against the Appellant and in favour of the Respondents. The appeal, therefore, lacks merit and is hereby dismissed.
“Accordingly, the judgment of the Rivers State High Court in Suit No. PHC/403MC/2012 delivered on the 18th February 2021 by J. Akpughunum is hereby affirmed. I make no order as to costs.”
Ola Faro and Ikobah Hilton represented the appellant, while N.A. Naenwi and Wilcox Abereton (SAN) represented the first and second respondents, respectively, according to the CTC of the judgment.
