Ola Olukoyede, the chairman of Nigeria’s anti-graft office EFCC, has written a demand letter to Peoples Gazette, seeking a retraction of the paper’s explosive publication over the weekend that detailed his role in a rogue plot to remove Bayo Ojulari as the chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. 

The August 2 story, which the paper stands by, said Mr Olukoyede and his State Security Service counterpart, Adeola Ajayi, forcibly detained Mr Ojulari and said he would not be excused until he signed a pre-written letter of resignation. The law enforcement chiefs said they were investigating a slew of corruption allegations against Mr Ojulari, and asked him what he might know about controversial British-Nigerian businesswoman Olatimbo Ayinde. 

The story sparked immediate uproar, and a last-minute intervention by First Lady Remi Tinubu helped stall Mr Ojulari’s exit. The NNPC boss resumed work on Monday, but he has not publicly commented on the matter. 

The Gazette’s report further said Messrs Ajayi and Olukoyede were working on the orders of Mr Ayinde, a notorious influence-peddler and criminal suspect now widely feared for her close ties to President Bola Tinubu. 

Mr Olukoyede’s lawyers at high-end Lagos firm Citipoint said the story cast their client in a sordid light and should be retracted within 48 hours of their August 6, 2025, letter. 

The lawyers, led by senior lawyer Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, said Mr Olukoyede “endeavoured to be responsive and appreciative of every scrutinous feedback he has received from the public and the media regarding his conduct” in office.

However, they said, The Gazette’s story would be hard for him to “ignore or treat with levity,” emphasising it carried criminal implications for the top anti-graft operative.

The Gazette reached out to the EFCC for comments before running the story on Saturday afternoon. Managing Editor Samuel Ogundipe said the paper was unfazed by Mr Olukoyede’s missive, which he said appeared ill-disguised to intimidate the outlet and its journalists. 

“We confronted the EFCC and other agencies featured in our story because we had absolute confidence in the epistemic process and rigour of its sourcing,” Mr Ogundipe said via a text message on Wednesday afternoon. “They sidestepped the opportunity to comment before publication, and, several days later, they still haven’t publicly denied the story despite being inundated with requests from everyday Nigerians and media outlets around the world.” 

Nonetheless, the editor said the anti-graft chief was within his constitutional rights to approach a civil court to mollify his grievances, noting that the paper can see through attempts to uncover its sources.

“We welcome Mr Olukoyede’s exercise of his essential rights to seek redress in court over a publication he found offensive,” Mr Ogundipe said. “But he might need to know that The Gazette remains unflinching in its public-interest journalism and also prepared to push back fiercely against any attempts to use vexatious lawsuits as a backdoor to uncovering sources critical to the story.”