Deji Adeyanju, a lawyer and activist, has labelled Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 general election as a ‘fraud’ following a legal threat from him.

On his official Facebook page on Wednesday, Adeyanju said he received a letter from Alex Ejesieme, Obi’s counsel.

In the letter Obi threatened legal action against Adeyanju, accusing him of making a string of false and defamatory statements on social media.

Obi alleged that Adeyanju had “persistently published malicious claims” on his X and Facebook accounts in a bid to “tarnish his hard-earned reputation before right-thinking Nigerians and the international community.”

The letter warned that unless Adeyanju retracted the publications and issued a public apology, Obi would institute legal proceedings to seek redress.

The letter cited a series of posts dating back to 2022, in which Adeyanju alleged that Obi diverted state funds into family businesses during his tenure as governor of Anambra.

He also claimed Obi attempted to bribe him during a private meeting, and used religion to sway voters in the 2023 presidential election.

One of the most recent posts, dated 21 August 2025, read: “Peter Obi can only be president of the Obidients on social media… I said I met him and he tried to give me money and called it thank you for coming, it’s 100% true.

“I said he took Anambra state funds and invested in his family business, it is true. And lastly, I said he is a religious bigot for using religion to campaign, it’s also true.”

Daily Times also reported how Adeyanju heaped blame on Obidients, holding them responsible for why their principal, Peter Obi, will never become Nigeria’s president, a statement Obi’s letter also frowned upon.

According to Deji in a post on X, Obidients — a term coined for Obi’s supporters — have insulted and threatened those who could help their candidate win an election. Now, he said, they stand no chance, not even against Atiku.

Adeyanju has repeatedly dared Obi to sue him. In another post, he wrote: “If Obi feels I have ever defamed him, let him sue me so that I can bring out evidence to prove the things I have said against him.”

But Obi’s legal team described the remarks as “reckless fabrications” and insisted that the former governor had built a reputation of integrity.

“By describing our client as a fraud, a religious bigot and the leader of a mob, you have deliberately sought to portray him as untrustworthy and unfit to hold public office,” the letter stated.

However, in a reaction posted on his official Facebook page, Adeyanju dismissed Obi’s demands and vowed to meet him in court.

“Just got this letter from Peter Obi the religious bigot demanding a retraction from me. I laughed so hard. A fraud parading himself as a messiah. This same guy called the great Sowore a blackmailer-in-chief,” he wrote.

He added that after his legal team served Serah, whom he referred to as Obi’s “errand girl,” a letter demanding the retraction of alleged defamatory posts about his wife, she quickly sought help from “the leader of the mob.”