A Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered substituted service of court processes on several defendants in a defamation suit filed by former Chief of Army Staff, Faruk Yahaya.

The order was granted by Court No. 2 of the FCT High Court on March 17, 2026, directing that all originating processes in the case be served through alternative means after previous attempts at direct service reportedly failed.

SolaceBase had reported that former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), retired Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, filed a ₦1.5 billion defamation lawsuit against retired Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi, alleging that defamatory claims linking him to terrorism financing, illegal mining, and banditry were malicious and unfounded.

The suit, filed in January 2026, also names Arise Broadcasting Limited and Sahara Reporters Media Group as defendants, seeking an additional ₦600 million in damages for injuries to his reputation and integrity.

According to the court order, the Court Bailiff is to serve the defendants through publication of the processes in a national newspaper circulating within the Federal Capital Territory and by pasting the documents at their last known addresses.

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The defendants in the suit include retired Major General Danjuma Hamisu Ali-Keffi, Arise News and Sahara Reporters.

Speaking on the development, lead counsel to Yahaya, Mohammed Ndayako, confirmed that the court granted the order following difficulties encountered while attempting to serve the defendants.

He explained that the substituted service became necessary due to what he described as repeated evasion of service by the defendants.

According to Ndayako, attempts by the Court Bailiff to serve Major General Ali-Keffi at his post-retirement residence in Kurudu, Abuja, were unsuccessful as the retired officer allegedly declined to acknowledge the court documents.

He added that the address used for the attempted service was the same one recorded in the retired officer’s service records with the Nigerian Army.

The defamation suit was instituted by Yahaya, who served as Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff before his retirement from the military.