….Estate accuses Seun Oloketuyi of defaming late strongman in ‘Adedibu: Alagbara Ibadan’ — filmmaker says story is public record
A new biopic on the late Ibadan political strongman, Chief Lamidi Adedibu, has triggered a legal battle between his family and filmmaker Seun Oloketuyi.The film, titled Adedibu: Alagbara Ibadan, produced by Oloketuyi’s Ultimate Communications and directed by Abiodun Jimoh, chronicles Adedibu’s life, political rise, relationships and grip on Oyo State politics.
But in a letter dated October 5, administrators of the Adedibu estate, through their lawyers, accused the filmmakers of producing the biopic without consulting or obtaining approval from the family.The family said the film contains false claims about Adedibu’s personal life and political career, alleging that it portrays his early years, home life and character as morally corrupt.They also faulted the film’s depiction of Adedibu as a politician who rigged elections with violence and used “amala politics” to control Ibadan residents, describing it as a deliberate attack on his legacy as a grassroots leader.
According to the estate, the production team did not interview family members or access private records, and allegedly used personal photographs, audio recordings and images without permission.The family demanded the immediate removal of the movie, its trailers and all clips from YouTube and other platforms, and asked the producer to preserve all raw footage and scripts and to stop releasing any future documentaries, clips or social media content about Adedibu without written consent.
They also demanded a three-minute video apology on the same YouTube channel, to be pinned for 30 days, and a printed apology in the Nigerian Tribune within seven days, plus N500 million in damages for alleged privacy violation and injury to the family name.The family gave a 48-hour ultimatum, threatening to report privacy and copyright violations to YouTube, petition the police cybercrime unit, and file suit at the Oyo State High Court, where they said they would seek N1 billion in damages and a perpetual injunction.
But in a response dated October 7, lawyers to the filmmaker rejected all the demands.They argued that the family failed to identify specific false statements, provide timestamps, or present evidence to prove inaccuracies in the film.”The video referred to by you is a retelling of the public life and political career of a man who, by every account, was one of the most prominent, most discussed and most documented political figures in the history of Ibadan, Oyo State and South-West Nigeria,” the response stated.
The legal team said everything depicted in the film is already in the public domain, having been reported in newspapers, books, academic papers, documentaries and public discourse, and that Nigerian law does not require consent from relatives of a deceased public figure to produce a historical film about his public life.
They added that the movie relied on publicly available sources and did not disclose private details of living family members such as addresses, phone numbers or health records, and questioned whether relatives can sue for defamation on behalf of a deceased person.Despite rejecting the demands, the producer gave the family seven days to submit specific lines, timestamps and documentary proof of any errors.
He warned that he would defend the film in court and file a counter-notice if the family petitions YouTube, and would seek compensation for lost revenue if the video is taken down on false claims.In a separate notice, Ultimate Communications also denied social media claims that it solicited funds from the public or organisations to produce the film, describing the claims as false and saying its lawyers would take action against those spreading them. The company described Adedibu: Alagbara Ibadan as a creative work aimed at celebrating an iconic political figure.
Meanwhile, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has reviewed and approved the film. It was certified on October 8 with certificate number 061286 and rated 15.
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