Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has instituted a N15 billion defamation suit against the Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), Adeniyi Adeyemi, over allegations linking him to bribery, murder, and abuse of office.
The suit, filed before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, seeks N10 billion in general damages, N5 billion in aggravated damages, N200 million as the cost of litigation, and a court order compelling Adeyemi to publish a full retraction and unconditional apology in five national newspapers and across all social media platforms where the allegations were circulated.
The legal action follows a series of public allegations made by Adeyemi against the presidential aide.
On July 7, Gbajabiamila, through his lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Kemi Pinheiro, had issued a pre-action notice demanding that Adeyemi withdraw the allegations within 72 hours, delete all related videos from public circulation, and publish a retraction and apology.
The demand came after Adeyemi accused the Chief of Staff of receiving a N400 million bribe through a proxy in connection with an appointment into the PFIPC, an organisation that the Presidency has since publicly disowned, describing it as a fictitious agency.
Adeyemi also alleged that Gbajabiamila orchestrated efforts to deploy security agencies against him and linked him to the death of one Babatunde Tanimola, whom he described as an intermediary between himself and the Chief of Staff.
In his statement of claim before the court, however, Gbajabiamila dismissed the allegations as false, malicious, and entirely fabricated.
He maintained that he had never met Adeyemi, held any meeting with him, or communicated with him directly or indirectly.
“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 documents state.
Gbajabiamila further contended that instead of complying with the cease-and-desist letter, Adeyemi continued to repeat the allegations in subsequent media appearances.
According to the suit, Adeyemi granted an interview to social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, during which he admitted that he had never personally met Gbajabiamila and that all his alleged dealings were conducted through the late Babatunde Tanimola.
The Chief of Staff also cited another interview Adeyemi granted on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme anchored by Seun Okinbaloye on July 13, where he allegedly maintained the substance of the allegations without retracting them.
Gbajabiamila is asking the court to declare that the allegations published by Adeyemi are false, malicious, and defamatory.
In addition to the N15 billion damages, he is seeking an order directing Adeyemi to publish a full retraction and unconditional apology in five national newspapers within seven days of judgment and to keep the apology on all relevant electronic and social media platforms for 30 consecutive days.
He is also asking the court to compel Adeyemi to remove all videos, publications and recordings containing the disputed allegations and to issue a perpetual injunction restraining him from making or publishing similar statements in the future.
The case marks the latest development in the controversy surrounding the PFIPC, an organisation the Presidency has distanced itself from amid allegations of fraudulent appointments and unauthorised activities.
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