On the 13th of December 2022 the appeal court in South Africa ruled that neither Mr NJ Ayuk nor Centurion Law Group (https://CenturionLG.com) must issue a formal apology on aggressive lawyering statements made against Delphin Mocache Massoko and OCCRP in defense of a client wrongfully accused by both Delphin Mocache Massoko and OCCRP. Delfin Mocache Massoko is the son of His Excellency Avelino Mocache Mehenga, one of the most powerful Ministers of the government of Equatorial Guinea.
Delphin Mocache Massoko continuously harass the employees of Centurion Law Group and makes reckless and unfounded allegations against the high-level clients the firm represents, specifically Equatorial Guinea Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima. After reviewing the totality of the facts and applying law, the South African Appeals court ruled in favor of Mr Ayuk and Centurion Law Group.
Everyday Africans from Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa become victims of massive witch hunts and personal attacks on the work they do. Centurion Law Group will continue to vigorously defend our clients across the African continent, whether big our small. We strongly believe that justice should not be denied to anybody.
For the first time Delphin Mocache Massoko and the OCCRP are held accountable for their reckless allegations. Africans should not be silenced for defending anyone who is a victim of fallacious and untruthful allegations. Justice will always prevail.
The right to independent and confidential legal advice is a fundamental principle in any free and democratic society, and closely linked to the right to a fair trial, and the rule of law. This is something that Mocache and OCCRP are yet to understand. At its most simple, the main beneficiary of the principle is the client who may be under attack.
When lawyers and law firms are smeared and attack by bloggers because of the work they do, it is the clients and the public who would suffer the most and also the quality of work that is provided.
The attacks from Mocache and OCCRP are comparable to prominent conspiracy theorist Alex jones and undermine the rule of law and can have real-life consequences for many Africans.
As one of Africa’s leading energy firms, we are proud that South African courts have shown that legal rights cannot be overridden without due process, and that we have legal professionals who serve the rule of law and keep our democracy alive.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Centurion Law Group.
About Centurion Law Group:
Centurion Law Group is headquartered in Johannesburg with offices and partners across Africa, Europe and the Middle East. Centurion Law Group is a law firm transforming the way law is practiced on the continent. Our internationally trained lawyers and advisors are renowned for advising governments, foreign investors, local companies, other law firms, and the private sector. The team’s multilingual skills mean we can work in English, Spanish, French, German, and other African indigenous languages.
