The Chief of Staff to the President, Olufemi Hakeem Gbajabiamila, has given Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew 72 hours to retract the alleged defamatory claims made against him during a press conference on June 25, 2026, or face civil and criminal legal action.
The ultimatum was issued through Gbajabiamila’s legal counsel, Pinheiro LP, in a cease-and-desist letter dated July 6, 2026, and signed by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Kemi Pinheiro.
The letter described Matthew’s allegations as false, malicious, reckless and entirely without factual foundation.
According to the law firm, the press conference was widely circulated across print, electronic, and social media platforms, with an addition that It contained claims that Gbajabiamila demanded 48% of a take-off grant for the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, received N400 million through proxies for appointments, abused his office to intimidate individuals and media houses, and was involved in budget fraud, manipulation of security agencies, corruption, abuse of office, and a criminal cover-up, including murder.
The law firm stated that Gbajabiamila has never met, communicated with, or had any relationship with Prince Matthew, describing the publication as grave allegations of criminality made without lawful justification or evidence.
The firm stated that the claims have damaged Gbajabiamila’s reputation, exposed him to public ridicule, and eroded confidence in his office.
The solicitors also noted that Prince Matthew is currently facing trial before the Federal High Court, Abuja, in Charge No. FHC/ABJ/CR/652/2026, FRN v. Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew & Ors, over alleged forgery of presidential appointment documents.
Pinheiro argued that several allegations in the press conference relate to matters already before the court, and criticised Matthew for resorting to trial by media.
The Chief of Staff is, therefore, demanding that Prince Matthew cease and desist from further defamatory statements; remove all related publications, videos, and transcripts from every platform; publish a full retraction and apology in at least five national newspapers and across all platforms where the claims appeared; and provide a written undertaking to not make further defamatory statements.
The letter warned that failure to comply within 72 hours would trigger both civil and criminal proceedings.
According to the law firm, the civil suit would seek ₦10 billion in aggravated and exemplary damages to be paid to charities of Gbajabiamila’s choice, a perpetual injunction against further publications, and a court order compelling a retraction and apology.
A criminal complaint for alleged criminal defamation under FCT laws will also be filed, the law firm stated.
The letter entitled, ‘Cease and desist in re: false and defamatory statements contained in your widely circulated press statement of the 25th of June, 2026’ reads:
“We act as Solicitors to Rt. Hon. Olufemi Hakeem Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria between 2019 and 2023 (“our Client”), on whose firm instructions we write.
“Our client is one of Nigeria’s most accomplished public servants, an eminent lawyer, a highly successful politician, and a renowned statesman whose public life has, over several decades, been defined by distinguished service, exemplary leadership, and an unwavering commitment to democratic governance and nation-building.
“He has earned an enviable reputation both within Nigeria and internationally through his meritorious service in various public offices, culminating in his tenure as Speaker of the House of Representatives and his present appointment as Chief of Staff to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“His reputation for leadership, integrity, competence and public service constitutes one of his most valuable personal and professional assets, painstakingly built over many years of dedicated service.
“Our client’s attention has been drawn to a press conference addressed by you and circulated extensively across traditional and digital media platforms under the title ‘PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESS BY PRINCE ADENIYI ADEYEMI MATTHEW.’
“The publication which has been extensively circulated across several print, electronic and social media platforms and has consequently attracted widespread public attention, contains numerous statements which are not only false, malicious, reckless and entirely without factual foundation, but were clearly designed to portray our client as corrupt, dishonest, criminally culpable, morally bankrupt, administratively incompetent, a murderer and unfit to occupy public office.
“In particular, in your press conference, you falsely alleged, among other things, that our client demanded or requested forty-eight percent (48%) of the alleged take-off grant of an entity described as the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council; received the sum of 400,000,000.00 by proxy in connection with appointments relating to the said entity; abused and exploited his office as Chief of Staff to intimidate individuals and media organisations; knowingly participated in fraudulent governmental processes relating to the national budget; acted dishonestly and in a manner warranting his resignation from public office; sought to manipulate or misuse security agencies against you; may have acted under the influence of intoxicating substances in the discharge of his official duties; and engaged in conduct suggestive of corruption, abuse of office, criminality and gross misconduct; is a murderer, assassin and participated in a criminal cover-up.
“These allegations are not only false but are gravely defamatory. They plainly convey to ordinary, reasonable members of society that our client is corrupt, dishonest, criminally culpable, morally bankrupt, unfit for public office, violent, dangerous and undeserving of public trust.
“In fact, according to our client, you have never at any time met, interacted with, communicated with, or had any form of personal or official dealing whatsoever with him.
“Your decision to fabricate and publish allegations against a person with whom you have had absolutely no relationship or interaction underscores the reckless, baseless and malicious nature of your publication.
“Your publication goes far beyond fair comment, criticism or political discourse. Rather, it consists of grave allegations of criminality, corruption, abuse of office, bribery, extortion, obstruction of justice and official misconduct made without any lawful justification or supporting evidence.
“By deliberately publishing these allegations to the Nigerian public and causing their widespread dissemination through multiple media platforms, you have gravely injured our client’s hard-earned reputation, exposed him to public ridicule and contempt, diminished public confidence in his office, and caused significant reputational damage both within and outside Nigeria.
“Our client finds it particularly disturbing that you elected to make these sensational allegations through a widely publicised press statement without first presenting any credible evidence before any competent investigative or judicial authority.
“It is even more disturbing to our client that you resorted to defaming him through your press statements after a criminal charge had been filed against you at the Federal High Court, Abuja Judicial Division in Charge No: FHC/ABJ/CR/652/2026; FRN V. Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew & Ors of the F.C.T bordering on allegations of forgery, particularly forging an appointment letter and Presidential Letter Headed Papers purporting that you were appointed by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, President, Federal Republic of Nigeria amongst other allegations of forgery.
“The insinuations contained in your press conference touch on and concern the counts of the charge over which a court of competent jurisdiction is already seized.
“Trial by media remains unknown to Nigerian law and cannot be a substitute for due process.
“Our client’s reputation has been built over many years of public service and cannot be lawfully destroyed by reckless fabrications, malicious conjecture or sensational accusations designed solely to attract public attention.
“The concerned members of the public, including our client’s friends and political associates, who have, since the aforesaid publication, been inundating our client with telephone calls, have, by reason of your false and defamatory statements, formed the opinion that our client is not to be trusted.
“Your defamatory statements contained in the interview under reference, which have enjoyed wide readership, no doubt carry with them the imputation of extreme dishonesty, corruption and fraud.
“Clearly, in the way you have proceeded in your reckless defamatory statements, you have left no one in doubt that your mission was calculated to injure our client amongst his political associates and Nigerians at large.
“We have been instructed by our client to make a demand and we do hereby formally demand that you, within 72 hours of receipt of this letter cease and desist from making, repeating, publishing or causing to be published any further defamatory statements concerning our client; remove and procure the removal of the offending press conference, transcripts, videos, recordings, publications and all substantially similar materials from every platform under your control; publish a full, unequivocal and unreserved retraction and apology acknowledging that the allegations made against our client are false, defamatory and without factual basis, such apology to be published with equal prominence in at least five national newspapers, all platforms on which the offending publication appeared, and any social media accounts through which it was disseminated; provide our law firm with a written undertaking that you shall refrain from making any further defamatory statements concerning our client.
“Take notice that unless the foregoing demands are fully complied with within 72 hours of your receipt of this letter, our client shall, without further reference to you, commence appropriate legal proceedings against you seeking, including lodging a criminal petition/complaint against you for criminal defamation of our client in line with extant laws of the F.C.T.; commencing civil proceedings where we shall, on behalf of our client seek amongst others; the sum of N10,000,000,000.00 (Ten Billion Naira Only) as aggravated and exemplary damages which shall be paid to a charity or charities of our client’s choice; perpetual injunction restraining any further defamatory publication; a mandatory order compelling the publication of an apology and retraction.”
It would be recalled that during the press conference, Prince Adeniyi had during his press conference called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to establish an independent investigative panel to examine claims surrounding the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), following a disclaimer issued by the Chief of Staff to the President, Gbajabiamila.
Prince Adeniyi stated that he decided to publicly address what he described as misrepresentation, institutional denial, and deliberate attempts to silence legitimate questions concerning the alleged agency.
He also wished Gbajabiamila a happy birthday, describing the press conference as a birthday gift while urging him to explain what he knows about the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC).
The controversy followed a disclaimer reportedly issued on June 11, 2026, in which the Office of the Chief of Staff distanced itself from the alleged agencies.
Rejecting the disclaimer, Prince Adeniyi argued that the matter goes beyond personalities and centres on issues of governance, transparency and accountability.
He questioned how references to the alleged agency reportedly appeared on pages 50 and 51 of the 2026 Appropriation Act if, as stated in the disclaimer, the agency does not exist.
According to him, the alleged inclusion raises questions about the budget preparation process, which involves executive agencies, the Budget Office, ministries and the National Assembly before presidential assent.
Prince Adeniyi also questioned whether the alleged agency operated bank accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria and whether it was allocated office space within the Federal Secretariat, insisting that such developments, if accurate, deserved thorough investigation.
He further alleged that he had been unfairly portrayed as engaging in fraudulent activities and claimed there had been attempts to criminalise his diplomatic engagements.
Among the most serious allegations made during the briefing, Prince Adeniyi claimed that the disagreement between him and the Chief of Staff stemmed from an alleged demand for a percentage of the agency’s take-off grant, an allegation for which he did not present documentary evidence during the press conference.
He also alleged that proxy payments amounting to ₦400 million had been made in relation to the matter.
Prince Adeniyi also called for investigations into the death of an intermediary he identified as Babatunde Tanimola, alleged assassination attempts against him, and a forensic examination of documents allegedly signed by the Chief of Staff.
He urged that any investigative panel should include representatives of civil society organisations and international bodies to ensure transparency and credibility.
According to him, the panel should review budgetary records, examine official documents, question all relevant parties and publish its findings publicly.
“If I am wrong, let an independent process prove it. If Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila is right, let it confirm it,” he said.
He appealed to the media, civil society organisations, religious and traditional leaders to focus on facts and support an impartial investigation.
WATCH TOP VIDEOS FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE TV