World boxing champion and national honour recipient Bash Ali (OON) has filed a lawsuit against former Minister of Sports Mr Sunday Akin Dare before an Abuja High Court over ₦500 billion in alleged extortion and defamation of character.

Court documents obtained by journalists indicate that the matter, filed under suit number FCT/HC/CV/6411/2023, is scheduled for hearing on Thursday, July 3, 2025, at High Court 4, Maitama, Federal Capital Territory.

Bash Ali is demanding ₦500 billion in damages from Mr. Dare, who currently serves as the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu.

The suit also joins the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (now the National Sports Commission) and the Federal Government of Nigeria as co-defendants.

Also joined in the case brought before the court by Ali—through his 10-man legal team led by former Minister of Communications, Barrister Adebayo Shittu—are the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (now the National Sports Commission) and the Federal Government of Nigeria.

In a statement, the Director of Communications and Publicity for the Bash Ali Guinness World Records Boxing Project, Harry Agina, said: “It would be recalled that Bash Ali had, in a series of letters to President Bola Tinubu, accused the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN)—through the office of the Chief of Staff to the President—of facilitating an advance payment of \$12 million. He also accused the FGN, through the then Minister of Sports and now Special Adviser on Media to the President, Sunday Akin Dare, and Barr. D.A. Muhammad at the National Sports Commission, of extorting ₦13 million from him.”

Agina further claimed that after former Minister of Sports and now Minister of State for Trade and Investment, John Enoh, allegedly tried and failed to extort another $1 million, the FGN stalled the hosting of the first Guinness World Record Boxing Championship fight on African soil and the numerous benefits it would have brought to Nigeria.

According to Bash Ali, his refusal to cooperate with corrupt government officials is the main reason behind the tactics being used to delay or sabotage the hosting of the Guinness World Record Boxing Championship fight—an event expected to be the most lucrative in the history of Pay-Per-View television revenue.