The Chief of Staff to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, Mr Tayo Ayinde, has dropped a litigation threat against the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams.
Ayinde’s lawyer, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika (SAN), in a letter dated Wednesday, March 27, 2024, addressed to Adams’ lawyers, OKC Attorneys, stated that Ayinde “has given consideration to your (Adams’) letter dated Monday, March 25, 2024, in response to my letter of March 20, 2024, on his behalf, to your client, Iba Gani Adams, the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland.”
The PUNCH had reported Tuesday that Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, alias Sunday Igboho; and Ayinde, had both threatened to drag Adams to court for allegedly accusing them of plotting an assassination.
Igboho and Ayinde, in separate pre-action letters by their lawyers, demanded that Adams should retract the said assassination claim against them or they would drag him to court.
In the March 20, 2024, pre-action letter, Ayinde, through his lawyer, Olumide-Fusika, complained about a viral note, in which Adams was allegedly heard saying in Yoruba language: “So, be careful associating with Igboho. Just last night, he was with Tayo Ayinde, the Lagos State Governor’s Chief of Staff. He was heavily paid. You know that I have an extensive intelligence network as Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland. Until about 2:45 am, he was with Tayo Ayinde, the Lagos State Governor’s Chief of Staff, who Tinubu also uses in Lagos to coordinate the execution of his evil machinations. He has been doing work of that nature for Tinubu since his days in the SSS.
“He resigned from the SSS, Ibadan to concentrate fully on such work for Tinubu, who compensated him with the office of Chief of Staff to the Lagos State Governor. It was at his hotel somewhere in Ikeja, Lagos, that Igboho visited him to collect money for logistics to confront me. Igboho left lbadan at about midnight to attend this meeting which ended at about 2:45 am.
“Tayo Ayinde gave N45m in cash to Igboho for the operation, thus shortchanging Igboho to the tune of N5m out of the N50m purse provided by Tinubu. The discovery of this has brewed disenchantment in their midst.”
However, in a statement on Tuesday by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Aderemi, Adams described the voice note as distorted.
He also described the threat of lawsuits by Igboho and Ayinde as “a grand conspiracy” to discredit his person, saying he was ready to do everything to protect his hard-earned name and the office he represented.
Adams’ lawyer said, “Firstly, our client denies the content and inferences drawn by you in your letter under reference regarding the alleged audio clip you attributed to our client. As stated in your letter, the content of the alleged video clip, which is a concocted, distorted, and disjointed part of a private conversation between our client and another person in 2021, was published and widely circulated by one Chief Sunday Adeyemo (Alias ‘Sunday Ighoho’) and not our client.”
Toeing the line of peace, Ayinde’s lawyer in response to Adams, said his client understood that Adams had denied responsibility for the viral voice note and would let the matter rest.
Olumide-Fusika said, “In my client’s understanding of the content of your letter, your client denies responsibility for the circulation of the audio clip; views the content thereof to be a ‘concocted, distorted, and disjointed part of a private conversation’ he had with ‘another person in 2021’; blames the individual named in your letter for the ‘concoction’ and ‘distortion’ by ‘disjointedness’ he believes the audio clip in circulation has wrought to the true context of the private conversation between him and the unnamed other; and neither meant nor intended the defamatory imputations complained of against him by his utterances in the ‘concocted, distorted, and disjointed’ audio clip, considering that he made them in the context of ‘rumoured and unconfirmed information that he found difficult to believe.’
“In the circumstance, unless you dispute what has been summarised above as his understanding of what you were asked by your client to communicate to him, my client will allow the matter to rest.”
He said while Ayinde would not hold anyone in grudge for exercising their rights, it was his reasonable expectation that anyone doing so, including Adams, abided by truth, fairness and the paramountcy of public interest.
Responding also, Adams’ lawyer, Oluwole Kehinde, in a Thursday letter addressed to Ayinde’s lawyer, appreciated the CoS’ decision to drop his claim.
Oluwole wrote, “Our client appreciates your candour and your client’s decision to drop his claim against him (Adams). Your client’s counsel is also well-noted and valued. Thanks so very much for the understanding.”
