Court Dismisses Bash Ali’s ₦500 Billion Lawsuit Against Ex-Sports Minister Sunday Dare

An Abuja High Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by former world cruiserweight boxing champion, Bash Ali, against former Sports Minister Sunday Dare, over claims of extortion and defamation.

Presiding over the case on Thursday, Justice U.P. Kekemeke struck out the suit and declared it statute-barred, effectively ending all legal proceedings.

In the suit marked FCT/HC/CV/6411/2023, Ali sued Dare, the Federal Government, and D.A. Muhammad, former legal director at the sports ministry. He accused Dare of extorting ₦13 million from him as part of efforts to stage a Guinness World Record boxing fight in Nigeria. He also alleged that the Federal Government stalled the fight despite receiving a $12 million advance payment from potential sponsors.

Ali demanded ₦500 billion in damages, claiming the actions of Dare and others defamed him and sabotaged his career.

But the court dismissed all allegations, criticizing Ali for filing a frivolous case and wasting judicial time.

Ali, now 69, has spent over two decades pursuing his ambition to become the world’s oldest boxing champion—aiming to surpass Bernard Hopkins’ record, set at age 48 in 2013.

Over the years, he has clashed with multiple sports ministers, including Bolaji Abdullahi, Solomon Dalung, and most recently John Enoh—accusing each of corruption or sabotage. Several of those disputes have led to threats of legal action or public standoffs.

Despite repeated setbacks, Ali has remained vocal about his record fight ambitions, which he says have been repeatedly derailed by systemic corruption.