The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has sued the self acclaimed Director General of the non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), Matthew Adeyemi, over defamation.
The suit, filed before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja, seeks ₦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 retraction and apology in five national newspapers and across all social media platforms where the allegations were made.
The Chief of Staff, through his legal team led by Kemi Pinheiro, Adeyemi was asked to take down all videos in which he made the allegations against the chief of staff.
Gbajabiamila denied ever meeting or communicating with Adeyemi or authorising anyone to demand or receive money on his behalf.
NPO Reports that the controversy began after Adeyemi accused Gbajabiamila a 48 per cent kickback from the PFIPC’s ₦27.3 billion take-off grant.
He also alleged that ₦400 million was paid through an intermediary, while an additional ₦200 million was demanded to facilitate presidential approvals.
In his statement on oath, the Chief of Staff dismissed allegations linking him to the death of Babatunde Tanimola, whom Adeyemi claimed acted as an intermediary, as well as claims that he was involved in an alleged assassination attempt on the suspended non-existent agency’s director general or influenced investigations by security agencies.
According to the court filings, Gbajabiamila’s solicitors issued a cease-and-desist letter to Adeyemi on July 6, 2026, demanding a public retraction and apology.
However, the suit alleged that Adeyemi failed to withdraw the claims and instead repeated them during subsequent interviews.
Gbajabiamila told the court that during one of the interviews, Adeyemi admitted he had never met him personally or independently confirmed the identity of the individual he believed to be the Chief of Staff, claiming that all interactions were allegedly through the late Babatunde Tanimola.
Despite that admission, the claimant argued that Adeyemi continued to publicly repeat the allegations, further damaging his reputation.
The court documents also disclosed that Adeyemi is facing a separate criminal trial before the Federal High Court in Abuja over allegations involving forged presidential documents and forged appointment letters.
Gbajabiamila said the allegations had injured his personal and professional reputation by portraying him as corrupt and abusing public office.
He added that he opted to seek legal redress rather than engage in a media exchange, stating that the suit was aimed at protecting both his reputation and the integrity of the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President.
The FCT High Court has directed Adeyemi to make an appearance within 14 days of being served with the originating processes, failing which judgment may be entered against him in default.