Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has filed a ₦15 billion defamation suit against Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, over allegations that he demanded a 48 per cent kickback from a ₦27.3 billion take-off grant approved for a federal agency.
In the suit, Gbajabiamila is seeking ₦10 billion in general damages, ₦5 billion in aggravated damages, ₦200 million as the cost of the action, and an order compelling Adeyemi to publish a full retraction and apology in five national newspapers.
He 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 suit, filed by his legal team from Pinheiro LP led by Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), describes the allegations as false, malicious and defamatory.
According to the statement of claim, Adeyemi alleged during a press conference that Gbajabiamila demanded a 48 per cent kickback from the agency’s ₦27.3 billion take-off grant and that ₦400 million had already been paid through an intermediary, with an additional ₦200 million allegedly required to secure presidential approvals.
Gbajabiamila denied the allegations, insisting he had never met Adeyemi, communicated with him or authorised anyone to demand or receive money on his behalf.
The suit also references Adeyemi’s claims about the alleged death of an intermediary, Babatunde Tanimola, and an alleged assassination attempt against him, all of which the Chief of Staff denied any involvement in.
According to the court documents, Gbajabiamila’s lawyers issued a cease-and-desist notice on July 6, 2026, demanding a retraction and apology.
Rather than comply, Adeyemi allegedly repeated the allegations in interviews with social media influencer VeryDarkMan and later on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
In his witness statement, Gbajabiamila said Adeyemi admitted during one of the interviews that he had never met him in person, never held a video call with him and had relied solely on the late Tanimola for all communications.
The Chief of Staff argued that these admissions contradicted Adeyemi’s earlier categorical allegations.
The court filings also noted that Adeyemi is already facing criminal prosecution before the Federal High Court in Abuja over allegations of forgery and the use of forged presidential documents and appointment letters, which the claimant said formed the basis of the disputed claims.
Gbajabiamila maintained that the allegations have severely damaged his reputation, built over decades as a legal practitioner, former Speaker of the House of Representatives and current Chief of Staff to the President.
He urged the court to award all the reliefs sought, stating that the action was filed not only to protect his personal reputation but also to preserve the integrity of the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President.
