Former National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement and current Political Adviser, Northern Nigeria, to the presidential candidate of the New Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, Dr Yunusa Tanko, has demanded ₦5 billion in damages from fellow Obi supporter Nmaa Ukpabi over alleged defamatory publications concerning the disputed NDC House of Assembly ticket in Kaduna State.
Tanko, through his lawyers, V-C Ottaokpukpu & Associates, Umuchukwu Chambers, issued a pre-action notice dated September 9, 2026, accusing Ukpabi of making defamatory and injurious statements about him on social media platforms and WhatsApp groups.
The dispute is linked to the controversy surrounding the NDC primary election for Kawo Constituency in Kaduna State, where Tanko’s son, Yunusa Mohammed Salisu, was declared the party’s candidate despite another aspirant, Rakiya Baba Mohammed, being declared winner at the primary.
SaharaReporters had earlier reported that Rakiya allegedly won the direct primary held on May 29/30, 2026, after polling 225 votes against Salisu’s 132 votes.
The electoral officer’s report seen by SaharaReporters had declared Rakiya the winner and stated that the primary was successfully and peacefully conducted.
However, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) later published Salisu as the NDC candidate for the constituency, prompting Rakiya to challenge the development.
The controversy has since triggered accusations of manipulation and alleged interference in the party’s internal process.
In the latest development, Tanko’s lawyers accused Ukpabi of repeatedly publishing statements they described as defamatory and malicious, including allegations that Tanko manipulated the primary election to secure the ticket for his son.
The letter said Ukpabi had accused Tanko of being a “mandate thief orchestrator” and alleged that he was responsible for replacing Rakiya’s name with that of his son.
The lawyers quoted Ukpabi as writing: “Dr. Tanko, the mandate thief orchestrator.”
“You are a huge disappointment to the Obidient movement world-wide.”
“You are corrupt and do not deserve to be associated with the Obidient movement.”
“What you have taught your son in 2026 is to be a mandate thief.”
“It is only a hardened mandate thief professional that would birth a generation of mandate thieves.”
Ukpabi also allegedly wrote: “You stole Rakiya’s mandate successfully for your son Salisu last Friday July 31st 2026 and Rakiya’s name was removed from the list while Salisu your son’s name was uploaded on the list.”
She further described Tanko’s son as a “mandate thief” and alleged that Tanko had attempted to influence political figures to pressure Rakiya.
The lawyers said the publications were shared on several WhatsApp groups, including the All Inclusive Obidient Movement-General, Obidient Movement Lagos State, OK-Movement Kaduna State, All-Inclusive Obidient National Coordinators and All-Inclusive Obidient Leaders in NDC Coalition.
They said the alleged publications portrayed Tanko as “a thief, corrupt, fraudulent, wicked, shameless, deceitful, untrustworthy and duplicitous.”
The lawyers also accused Ukpabi of alleging that their client “manipulated the primary election process and corruptly ensured that Rakiya was short changed of her victory” and gave the ticket to his son.
According to the legal notice, the statements were circulated through WhatsApp groups, Facebook, X and other social media platforms.
The lawyers said the publications portrayed their client as a thief, corrupt person and someone who fraudulently manipulated the NDC primary election in favour of his son.
They rejected the allegations, arguing that Tanko’s reputation had been built over years of public service and political activism.
The lawyers said their client had been associated with “unity, Youth and grassroots Participation, stronger democratic institutions inter alia”, while his commitment to the rule of law and protection of human rights had never been questioned.
“Our client have (sic) therefore carefully considered the words used by you and made in utmost bad faith contained in your letter and several publications across various social media platforms and unable to fathom and decipher any scintilla and iota of truth in your baseless accusations that may warrant such a defamatory and injurious attack on his character and hard-earned reputation,” the lawyers said.
They further alleged that the disputed publication of June 30, 2026, was not an isolated incident.
“It is quite unfortunate to note that apart from your defamatory message of 30th June 2026, you had on several occasions made further similar malicious and injurious publications against our client which is continuing almost on daily basis now in your aforesaid social media accounts and various WhatsApp groups with wide coverage,” the lawyers said.
The legal notice accused Ukpabi’s publications of causing damage to Tanko’s reputation and demanded that the alleged defamatory materials be immediately removed.
The legal notice demanded that Ukpabi retract the alleged defamatory statements and publish apologies on two private television stations and the Nigerian Television Authority, as well as two private radio stations and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria.
The lawyers also demanded ₦5 billion in damages.
The notice warned that failure to comply within 24 hours would lead to legal action for defamation and alleged violation of Tanko’s constitutional rights.
It also said Tanko reserved the right to approach security agencies over what his lawyers described as conduct “perceived as cyberstalking and injurious to our client’s reputation.”
Among the demands was that Ukpabi remove “all the publications in its entirety” from WhatsApp groups and social media platforms, including shared individual and group accounts, in order to prevent further damage to Tanko’s reputation.
The lawyers also demanded a public apology and retraction of the alleged defamatory statements.
They said Ukpabi must publish an apology and retract the statements in at least two national newspapers within 24 hours of receiving the notice, with the choice of newspapers to be approved by Tanko or his lawyers.
The lawyers further demanded that Ukpabi publish a full retraction and unreserved apology in at least two international newspapers within the same 24-hour period.
The notice stated that the choice of the international newspapers must also be approved by Tanko or his solicitors before publication.
The demand comes amid the continuing controversy over the NDC’s Kawo Constituency ticket and allegations by some supporters that the party’s internal process was manipulated.
Tanko had previously denied allegations that he hijacked the ticket for his son.
Following the controversy, NDC spokesman Osa Director had told SaharaReporters that the party’s appeals committee could overturn the outcome of a primary where an appeal was found to have merit, although he said he could not confirm the details of what happened in the Kawo case.
Tanko’s son, Salisu, was among the contestants for the ticket, while Rakiya Baba Mohammed was declared the winner in the primary election according to the electoral officer’s report.
Rakiya subsequently challenged her removal from the party’s candidate list.
The controversy has continued even as Tanko moved into a new political role following his appointment as Peter Obi’s Political Adviser for Northern Nigeria.
Tanko recently accepted the appointment, while Dr Moses Paul, popularly known as Dr Mo, succeeded him as National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement.
The new role requires Tanko to focus on political activities and engagement across Northern Nigeria ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Tanko’s lawyers, however, said the allegations made against him were baseless and amounted to an attack on his character and hard-earned reputation.
The notice gives Ukpabi 24 hours to remove the publications, issue the demanded retractions and apologies, failing which Tanko’s lawyers said further legal steps would be taken.