Tukur Buratai, former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), has filed a ₦1 billion defamation suit against Danjuma Ali-Keffi, a retired major-general, over allegations linking him to terrorism financing and the shielding of Boko Haram suspects.
The suit, filed on Thursday before a Kaduna State High Court, arose from statements allegedly made by Ali-Keffi and circulated through online media platforms, in which Buratai was accused of maintaining relationships with individuals connected to terrorism and facilitating the unlawful release and protection of terror suspects during his tenure as army chief.
Read also: COAS prioritises training, combat readiness in fight against insurgency
Buratai, who is suing through his legal team, A. I. Aliyu and A. M. Hassan of Law Plus Consult, urged the court to declare that the publications amplified across several news and social media platforms, were false, malicious and gravely injurious to his reputation.
According to the statement of claim, Ali-Keffi allegedly granted interviews in 2025 in which he insinuated that Buratai was involved in terrorism-related activities and efforts to conceal such acts while serving as COAS.
Buratai maintained that the claims spread widely on digital platforms including Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), WhatsApp and Instagram, subjecting him to public ridicule and reputational harm both within and outside Nigeria.
The former army chief firmly denied the allegations, stating that he has never been investigated, indicted or convicted for terrorism, terrorism financing or any related offence.
He described the claims as baseless, misleading and deliberately calculated to tarnish his image.
Buratai argued that the statements portrayed him as a threat to national security, an unpatriotic citizen and a corrupt public officer, adding that the accusations had severely damaged his integrity, honour and standing in the international community.
He further accused Ali-Keffi of acting with malice and reckless disregard for the truth, noting that the defendant allegedly acknowledged in the same publications that no official investigation had found Buratai culpable of terrorism financing.
Among the reliefs sought, Buratai is asking the court to compel Ali-Keffi to retract the alleged defamatory statements and issue an unreserved public apology.
He requested that the apology be published with equal prominence in at least two national newspapers, and across all social media platforms where the allegations were circulated.
In addition, the former COAS is seeking ₦1 billion in general damages for libel, citing the gravity of terrorism-related allegations, their wide dissemination and the weight attached to the claims due to the defendant’s status as a retired senior military officer.
He also prayed the court to grant a perpetual injunction restraining Ali-Keffi from making or repeating the alleged defamatory statements and to order the defendant to bear the full cost of the litigation, including legal fees.
Meanwhile, the court has yet to fix a date for the hearing of the suit.
The writ of summons mandates Ali-Keffi to enter an appearance within 21 days of being served, failing which the court may proceed to hear and determine the case in his absence.
