•Kenneth Okonkwo and Peter Obi
The spokesperson for Atiku Abubakar’s 2027 presidential campaign under the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, says he has not received any court documents in the ₦8 billion defamation suit filed against him by Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
Okonkwo, who previously worked with Obi, said this on Channels TV last night while responding to questions about the ongoing legal dispute.
“I always hear whatever they are doing from social media because they are just presidential candidate social media uncouth followers. So, I heard it on social media, and I am sure whenever I receive it, I’ll let you know,” he said.
The ADC chieftain was also asked about reports that the court had granted Obi’s legal team permission to serve him through substituted means after allegedly failing to serve him personally.
Responding, Okonkwo questioned the basis for the application.
“That’s the whole falsehood about this because when you claim substituted service, you will have to go into an affidavit to say you have tried to serve the person personally and you did not get the person,” he said.
He maintained that, although he had responded to a pre-action notice previously sent to his phone, he had not received any originating court processes.
“All along the pre-action, they put it on social media before they served me on my phone. Even though I could have objected to the mode of service, I accepted it and replied. But from the court, I have not received anything,” the lawyer said.
Okonkwo dismissed the legal action as an attempt to silence him, insisting he would not retract his earlier statements about Obi.
“There is no battle at all, and this is just a joke. I told people that this is a calculated attempt to gag me, intimidate me, and harass me. I have been a public affairs analyst since 2009. I stand by everything that I said,” he said.
The suit followed comments made by Okonkwo during a live television interview in which he alleged that Obi and some NDC leaders extorted ₦10 million from aspirants seeking seats in the House of Representatives and manipulated the party’s candidate selection process.
Obi, through his legal team, subsequently filed an ₦8 billion defamation suit at the Anambra State High Court, Onitsha Judicial Division, seeking general damages, a public retraction of the statements and a perpetual injunction restraining Okonkwo from repeating the allegations.
According to court filings, Obi’s lawyers later obtained leave of court to serve the originating processes on Okonkwo by substituted means after unsuccessful attempts at personal service.
