Afrobeats star David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has claimed that Senate President Godswill Akpabio and billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote contacted him during the Osun State governorship election and asked him to delete his social media posts about the poll.
Davido made the disclosure during an interview with News Central TV on Tuesday while recounting his experience monitoring the August 15 election, which was won by his uncle, Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The singer also alleged that political actors spent more than N110 billion in an attempt to influence the outcome of the election.
“I just confirmed today. They spent N110 billion. I’m coming from somewhere where we had an insider who was sending us… If you see the cash these people brought in,” Davido said.
He expressed concern that such alleged spending could establish a dangerous pattern for future elections if left unchecked.
According to him, his team did not distribute money to voters on election day, relying instead on public support and voter vigilance.
“We didn’t spend a dime on election day. All we could do was just pray that these people take their money and vote for us,” he said.
Davido also alleged that some voters confronted individuals he said were attempting to interfere with the electoral process.
“It got to a point where it was the Osun people that were beating the people that were trying to seize ballots. People are tired,” he added.
Speaking about the collation of results, Davido said he received calls from influential figures asking him to remove his posts on X, where he was sharing updates from the election.
“I heard the Senate President was trying to call the collation centre… They were calling me to delete. I said sorry o. You guys have literally just gone against my uncle. I can’t delete anything,” he said.
Davido further claimed that Dangote also contacted him, but he declined to remove the posts until the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officially announced the result.
“Uncle Aliko called me too. I said, ‘Uncle, I’m not deleting until the INEC announcement,’” he said.
The singer said Governor Adeleke’s re-election demonstrated that popular support could overcome financial and political influence.
“My uncle should be an example to all other government officials and governors. When you stand by the people, the people will stand by you,” he said.
Davido’s involvement in Osun politics is linked to his family’s political history in the state. His late uncle, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, was the first civilian governor of Osun State, while Ademola Adeleke, another uncle, is the incumbent governor.