The vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, is threatening a ₦10 billion defamation lawsuit against Primate Elijah Ayodele, founder of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, over alleged defamatory statements made during a recorded and livestreamed sermon.
Through his lawyers, Magaji Mato Ibrahim (SAN) & Co., Kwankwaso sent a formal legal letter dated June 11, 2026, to the cleric, demanding an immediate retraction. The letter was shared publicly on X by Kwankwaso’s media aide, Saifullahi Hassan.
According to the lawyers, Ayodele allegedly told his congregation that Kwankwaso was not sincere in his political alliance with NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi and had been financially induced to become his running mate.
The lawyers quoted Ayodele as saying, “Kwankwaso is a fake to Obi, Kwankwaso will betray you. Kwankwaso has been paid to be vice president to Obi.”
Kwankwaso, a two-term former governor of Kano State who ran for president on the NNPP platform in 2023, joined forces with Obi under the NDC banner ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The alliance appears to have rattled supporters of the ruling party – APC, given that both men came third and fourth in the last presidential election in 2023.
A 24-Hour Ultimatum — and a ₦10bn Warning
The lawyers of Kwakwanso described the sermon remarks as deliberate, premeditated, and grossly unsubstantiated, alleging the statements portrayed Kwankwaso as “deviant, hypocritical, deceitful and insincere” before the public.
Their demands were explicit.
“That you immediately within twenty-four (24) hours publish a full, direct and unequivocal retraction of and apology for the false, malicious and defamatory publication against our Client, on all social media platforms and reputable local and international news outlets, while ensuring that the retraction and apology is given the same visibility and prominence as your defamatory publication,” the letter read.
Beyond the retraction, the lawyers also demanded a written undertaking from Ayodele to refrain from making or republishing any similar statements in future.
Failure to comply, they warned, would leave Kwankwaso no option but to proceed to court, where his legal team would seek “substantial damages to the tune of Ten Billion Naira and cost of the action on a full indemnity basis.”
As of the time of publication, Primate Ayodele had not issued any public response to the legal letter.
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