Tinubu’s Chief of Staff demands apology, retraction across media after denying allegations of 48% bribe request and links to criminal claims

Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has instituted a ₦15 billion defamation lawsuit against Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), over what he describes as false and damaging allegations.

The suit, filed at the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja, seeks ₦10 billion in general damages and ₦5 billion in aggravated damages, alongside ₦200 million as the cost of legal action. Gbajabiamila is also asking the court to compel Adeyemi to issue a full retraction and apology in at least five national newspapers and to pin the same across all his social media platforms for 30 consecutive days.

The legal action, filed by Pinheiro LP and led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Kemi Pinheiro, follows allegations made by Adeyemi during a press briefing, where he accused Gbajabiamila of demanding a 48 per cent kickback from a ₦27.3 billion take-off grant meant for a federal agency. Adeyemi further claimed that ₦400 million was paid through a proxy, with an additional ₦200 million allegedly requested.

Gbajabiamila has firmly denied all allegations, describing them as entirely false and defamatory. In his statement of claim, he maintained that he has never met Adeyemi, held any discussions with him, nor authorised anyone to act on his behalf in any financial dealings.

He also refuted claims linking him to the death of Babatunde Tanimola, said to be an intermediary, who died in a hotel fire on October 22, 2025. Gbajabiamila further dismissed accusations of orchestrating an assassination attempt on Adeyemi and allegedly directing security agencies to suppress evidence.

Court documents reveal that after receiving a cease-and-desist letter dated July 6, Adeyemi reportedly told social media influencer VeryDarkMan that he had never met Gbajabiamila physically or virtually, insisting his dealings were solely with the late Tanimola. Despite this, he allegedly repeated the claims during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on July 13.

Gbajabiamila argues that the allegations stem from documents already under scrutiny, noting that Adeyemi is currently facing prosecution at the Federal High Court, Abuja, in Charge No. FHC/ABJ/CR/652/2026 over alleged forgery of presidential documents—claims he says underpin the defamatory statements.