Bribery Allegations: Gbajabiamila Slams N15bn Defamation Suit against ‘Fake Agency’ DG

Alex Enumah in Abuja

The Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has filed a N15 billion defamation suit against Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew.

The suit filed at a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, borders around the demand of 48 per cent kickback from a N27.3 billion take-off grant approved for a federal agency.

Recall that Justice Mohammed Umar of a Federal High Court in Abuja had on Tuesday ordered the arrest of Matthew, who claims to be the Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).

Justice Umar had made the order following the failure of Matthew to appear before his court for arraignment on an eight-count criminal charge of alleged conspiracy, forgery and impersonation.

Meanwhile, in the suit filed at the FCT High Court, Gbajabiamila is demanding the sum of N10 billion as general damages, N5 billion as aggravated damages, and N200 million as the cost of the action, and an order compelling Matthew to publish a full retraction and apology in five national newspapers.

Besides, the plaintiff is also asking the court to direct the defendant to pin the apology on all social media platforms and online channels where the alleged defamatory statements were published for 30 days.

The Chief of Staff, through his team of lawyers led by Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, described the allegations as false, malicious and defamatory.

In the statement of claim, Gbajabiamila denied ever meeting or communicating with Matthew or authorising anyone to act on his behalf.

According to the court processes, Matthew had alleged at a press conference that a disagreement arose after Gbajabiamila purportedly demanded a 48 per cent kickback from the agency’s N27.3 billion take-off grant.

He further claimed that N400 million had already been paid through a proxy on behalf of the Chief of Staff, while an additional N200 million was required to secure presidential approvals.

“The Claimant has never met the Defendant, never held any meeting with him and has never authorised any intermediary, representative, agent or proxy to demand or receive money on his behalf,” the court filing stated.

The suit also referred to Matthew’s claims regarding the alleged mysterious death of an intermediary, Mr. Babatunde Tanimola, whom he claimed served as the link between himself and the Chief of Staff.

Matthew alleged that Tanimola died in a suspicious hotel fire in Utako, Abuja, on October 22, 2025, a day after Gbajabiamila allegedly petitioned the police.

He further claimed that he narrowly escaped an assassination attempt along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway in September 2025 and alleged that a “directive from above” instructed the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force to discontinue efforts to recover his stolen mobile phones, which he claimed contained crucial evidence.

According to the court documents, Gbajabiamila’s solicitors issued a cease-and-desist notice, which was published in several national newspapers, including THISDAY, on July 7, 2026. Rather than retract the allegations, Matthew allegedly granted an interview to social media influencer VeryDarkMan.

In his witness statement on oath, Gbajabiamila contended that Matthew made several admissions during the interview that contradicted his earlier allegations.

He said the defendant admitted that he had never met him in person, had never conducted a video call or any other form of verification to confirm the identity of the person he believed to be the Chief of Staff, and that all communications were conducted through the late Tanimola.

According to the deposition, Matthew also stated that he could neither say Gbajabiamila was lying nor affirm that he was telling the truth and that he intended to submit his documents to the police for verification.

He added that despite another opportunity to withdraw the allegations during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on July 13, 2026, the defendant neither retracted the allegations nor apologised.

According to Gbajabiamila, the repeated interviews, despite the cease-and-desist letter issued by his solicitors, demonstrated a deliberate effort to sustain and reinforce what he described as a campaign of false allegations against him.

He said the repeated publications generated fresh public discussions and numerous inquiries from friends, associates and professional colleagues within and outside Nigeria, thereby aggravating the damage to his reputation.

Gbajabiamila told the court that he deliberately refrained from responding through the media because he believed the courtroom was the proper forum for resolving the dispute.

He added that the action was instituted not only to vindicate his personal reputation but also to protect the integrity and dignity of the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President from what he described as false and reckless allegations.

The claimant urged the court to grant all the reliefs sought, expressing confidence that justice would be done after a full consideration of the evidence.