As Businesswoman Fires Back Calling Him A “Liar And Political Tool,”
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The dispute between businesswoman Tracy Ohiri and Minister of Works Senator David Umahi has exploded into a full-blown public war involving social media activist VeryDarkMan, human rights lawyer Marshall Abubakar, and now senior members of the legal profession, after VeryDarkMan released a detailed video accusing Ohiri of greed and blackmail, Ohiri fired back calling the activist a “big liar” and “political tool,” and senior lawyers raised potentially serious anti-money laundering concerns over the $70,000 cash payment at the centre of the dispute.
In a lengthy and characteristically fiery video, social media activist VeryDarkMan accused Ohiri of being greedy and ungrateful, revealing what he described as a timeline that exposes the real motive behind her sudden turn against Marshall Abubakar.
VeryDarkMan alleged that Ohiri collected the $70,000 payment on March 12, 2026, and remained silent for six consecutive days — the 12th through the 17th — posting normal content on her social media accounts including advertisements and casual videos.
He claimed that Ohiri only began her campaign against Marshall Abubakar on March 19 — one day after VeryDarkMan himself posted a video about a separate case involving a debtor identified as “Onwa” (Augustine Ogbejiofo, also known as Onwa Enugu), in which Barrister Masha (Marshall Abubakar) successfully negotiated a payment of N200 million plus N150 million in interest for a client named Ifeanyi Udizu.
“Guess what? It was a day after that video that this woman started to crash out, calling Masha’s name,” VeryDarkMan stated.
He alleged that Ohiri saw the N150 million interest payment secured in the Onwa case and became envious that her own settlement of $70,000 was significantly less than the amounts being recovered in other cases.
“This woman felt like, oh, she watched that video and said, ‘Another person’s own, they collected N150 million interest. But my own, they gave me $70,000 as against N305 million,'” VeryDarkMan alleged.
VeryDarkMan mounted a vigorous defence of Marshall Abubakar, pointing out that the lawyer had managed to secure $70,000 for a client who, by her own repeated admission, had no written contract, no formal agreement, and no documentary evidence linking her to Minister Umahi.
“Without an agreement, Barrister Masha was able to collect $70,000 for you. I dare any lawyer in Nigeria to achieve that without a written agreement,” VeryDarkMan declared.
He noted that Umahi had publicly challenged Ohiri to produce evidence of any communication between them before 2023, offering to pay N1 billion if she could do so — a challenge she has not met.
VeryDarkMan also challenged Ohiri to return the $70,000 if she considers it inadequate, providing an account number for his NGO — Martins Vincent Hotel Initiative, Zenith Bank — and inviting her to transfer the funds.
VeryDarkMan presented a detailed chronological analysis of Ohiri’s social media activity, claiming she made exactly nine posts attacking Marshall Abubakar on March 19 — the day after his video about the Onwa case — after six days of silence following the receipt of the $70,000.
He described the posts as escalating from initial demands for payment to recordings of phone calls with Abubakar, screenshots of conversations, and multiple videos — all of which he characterised as a coordinated blackmail campaign.
Ohiri responded with her own video, directly accusing VeryDarkMan of lying and describing him as a “political tool” being used against her.
“Your Mr. Integrity, VeryDarkMan, is a very big liar. I’ve been hearing that you lie, but I refused to believe it. So you are a liar like this,” Ohiri stated.
She made several counter-allegations against VeryDarkMan and Marshall Abubakar.
Ohiri alleged that VeryDarkMan and Marshall Abubakar are “very, very best of friends,” claiming that VeryDarkMan stayed in Abubakar’s house when he had issues with another social media personality, Michie, around the time he assumed prominence.
“When Michie and VeryDarkMan were having issues and the time he entered office, do you know whose house he was in and where he was sleeping? He was in Masha’s house,” Ohiri alleged.
She also pointed out that Abubakar is Sowore’s lawyer and VeryDarkMan’s best friend, suggesting a conflict of interest in VeryDarkMan’s coverage of her dispute.
“Masha is Sowore’s lawyer and Masha is your best friend. What does that mean?” Ohiri asked.
In her most striking accusation, Ohiri alleged that she had been warned by an associate of Abubakar that the lawyer would use VeryDarkMan to turn public opinion against her if she spoke out.
“They told me that he will use VeryDarkMan and finish the case for me, that he will turn Nigerians against me, and that is exactly what he has done,” Ohiri stated.
She described VeryDarkMan as a tool being funded by political interests to do what government is supposed to do, and apologised to several individuals she had previously attacked for criticising VeryDarkMan.
“I want to use this video to apologise to everybody that I’ve been fighting, that I thought they were lying. Mama P, Lizzy, Randy Peter, all of you, please forgive me,” Ohiri stated.
Despite her attacks on VeryDarkMan and Abubakar, Ohiri repeatedly confirmed the central fact that undermines her claim — that there was no written contract between her and Minister Umahi.
“Nigerians have always known that there was no written contract in this, my supply to David Umahi,” she stated multiple times during her video.
She maintained that Umahi called her directly to supply items and that his aide received the goods, but acknowledged she cannot produce the aide or documentary evidence to prove the transaction.
Ohiri claimed she told Abubakar she would not accept the $70,000 and had asked him to provide his account number so she could return it. However, VeryDarkMan pointed out the contradiction in her position — if she told Abubakar she would not collect the money, how did the money end up in her possession?
“You told Masha that you are not going to collect $70,000. So how is the $70,000 still in your possession when you are telling Masha to send you his account so you can refund it?” VeryDarkMan questioned.
In a separate but related development that could have far-reaching implications, a senior lawyer raised potentially serious legal concerns about the manner in which the $70,000 payment was made, questioning whether it violated Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.
“The audacity with which people come out to confess to the commission of crime baffles me. So, is it that our colleague is ignorant that giving or receiving cash payments beyond a certain threshold constitutes a crime?” the lawyer stated.
He drew a parallel with a previous incident in which former NBA President Y. C. Maikyau SAN publicly acknowledged receiving $50,000 in cash from the Kebbi State Government during an NBA Annual General Meeting.
The lawyer’s concern centres on the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, which places a N5 million limit for individuals and N10 million for corporate entities on cash payments. Amounts above these thresholds are required to go through financial institutions.
If the $70,000 (approximately N112 million at current rates) was paid in physical cash rather than through a bank transfer, the transaction could potentially violate the cash-payment restrictions under the Act and raise questions about compliance with Central Bank of Nigeria cash-policy rules.
A Senior Advocate responded to the anti-money laundering concerns with a lament about the state of the legal profession and Nigerian society.
“I am almost giving up on Nigeria and NBA and indeed the legal profession in general. Where you expected to see sanity, insanity reigns supreme. Impunity has eaten deep into the fabric of every strata of Nigeria including NBA and the legal profession,” the senior lawyer stated.
He decried the collapse of ethical standards, noting that rules of ethics and etiquette have been thrown overboard with “legalistic self-centred arguments” that have overshadowed the light of the legal profession.
“The nobility of the legal profession exists only in theory. In practical realities, things have fallen apart. It is difficult to see honesty and integrity today as a virtue worthy of reward. It is a very rare commodity,” he stated.
“Truth has taken flight out of almost all of us. We celebrate crooks and then disdain and disregard honest people. Speaking truth puts you in grave disadvantage. I wish the security situation allows me to retire to my village to farm,” the Senior Advocate concluded.
The public narration of the $70,000 cash transaction raises several potential legal issues. The Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 restricts cash payments above N5 million for individuals and N10 million for corporate entities. If the payment was made in physical cash, it could constitute a breach of these provisions.
The CBN’s cash-policy rules also require that large transactions be conducted through banking channels, and structuring payments to avoid reporting requirements can trigger regulatory scrutiny.
From a professional conduct perspective, if any lawyer was involved in facilitating, structuring, or concealing a cash payment outside lawful banking channels, it could raise issues under the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners regarding integrity, candour, and conduct unbecoming of a legal practitioner.
However, it must be noted that these remain allegations and concerns rather than proven offences. The strongest legal criticism is that the public disclosure of large cash transactions, undocumented settlements, and side deals suggests potential non-compliance with anti-money laundering norms and a lack of transparency that the legal profession is expected to uphold.
The Ohiri-Umahi dispute, which began as a straightforward debt and harassment claim, has now expanded into a multi-front public battle involving the businesswoman, the minister, a human rights lawyer, a social media activist, and the legal profession itself.
The central facts remain largely undisputed: Ohiri has no written contract with Umahi; she received $70,000 through Abubakar’s mediation from the minister’s associate Barrister Joseph Ekumankama; and she has repeatedly confirmed on record that there is no documentary evidence linking her to the minister.
What remains disputed is whether she was coerced into the apology, whether Abubakar acted ethically, whether the $70,000 was adequate or exploitative, and whether the entire episode has been driven by legitimate grievance or, as VeryDarkMan and Abubakar allege, by greed and blackmail.
Neither Minister Umahi nor Barrister Joseph Ekumankama has made further public comment. The NBA has not responded to Ohiri’s petition for investigation. Marshall Abubakar has threatened legal action against Ohiri, while Ohiri has vowed to continue pressing her claims.
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