A court in the United Kingdom has ruled against blogger Maureen Badejo, ordering her to pay £100,000 in damages to Dr Daniel Olukoya, founder of the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries (MFM), and his wife.
The ruling was delivered by the UK High Court of Appeal (Queen’s Bench Division), presided over by Justice Lavender. The court upheld earlier decisions made on 13 April 2021 and 3 February 2022 by Master Thormett in a defamation case filed by the Olukoyas.
The court found that Badejo made false and defamatory statements online about Dr Olukoya and his wife. As a result, she was ordered to pay £65,000 to Dr Olukoya and £35,000 to his wife.
In addition to the financial damages, the court directed Badejo to publicly withdraw her statements and publish a summary of the court’s judgment on her social media platforms.
Justice Lavender refused Badejo permission to appeal, stating that her application lacked merit. He added that under UK court rules, the decision cannot be challenged further in an oral hearing.
The judge also described her proposed grounds of appeal against the February 2022 order as “hopeless and pointless.”
With the appeal dismissed, the court reaffirmed that false accusations carry serious consequences and that individuals are legally protected from defamatory statements.
