Journalist Tobore Ovuorie has said that media entrepreneur Mo Abudu gave her 100 thousand naira for the burial of her father.
Ms Ovuore said this while reacting to Mrs Abudu’s video in an official statement released on Wednesday.
She said she had sent messages to her contacts including Abudu to inform them about her father’s death and for them to remember her family and herself in prayers.
“I sent messages out to all the contacts on my phone subsequently, to inform them to please remember my family and I in prayers; including Aunty Mo, at that time (before the release of Oloture). I have NEVER asked Aunty Mo for money.
“Rather, she sent me a message to send my account details for her to send me a token towards my dad’s burial. I did. And she subsequently sent me N100,000.00 (one hundred thousand naira),” she wrote.
Mo Abudu had on Tuesday released a video to address Tobore’s copyright claim over Oloture.
She said in May 2019 they reached out to Ovuorie to acknowledge her journalistic ability, to commend, recognise and encourage her in her ongoing campaign against sex trafficking.
Premium Times Services Limited, publishers of Premium Times, had in November 2020, said journalist Tobore Ovuorie cannot claim copyright over the investigative report that inspired the movie Oloture.
Ovuorie, however, claims that the production is an infringement of her copyright as the subject and author of the story.
A letter dated November 3, 2020 by her lawyers Maverick and Spectre demanded among others payment of N5million as compensation and inclusion of open and end credits in the movie “acknowledging the adaptation of her work in line with industry standard and practice.”
Describing Tobore’s monetary demands as “extortionist and blackmailing” in nature, the 56-year-old said she had a good relationship with the journalist before the movie was released on Netflix.
Oloture stars Sharon Ooja, Beverly Osu, Omowunmi Dada, Segun Arinze, Omoni Oboli, Ada Ameh, Ikechukwu, Blossom Chukwujekwu, Sambasa Nzeribe and many others.
