The Presidency has said Afrobeat singer David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, would not be able to make the kind of comments and allegations he made during the Osun State governorship election in countries such as Rwanda or Ethiopia.
Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, made the comment while speaking on Symfoni TV.
Ajayi accused the singer of being partisan during the August 15 Osun governorship election.
He argued that Davido’s support for his uncle, Governor Ademola Adeleke, was not simply motivated by concern for the people of Osun State.
“Davido was an active participant in the process. He went all out for his uncle to win the election. He was part of the process and even held a position in the campaign structure,” Ajayi said.
The presidential aide said Davido’s social media posts should therefore be viewed in the context of his involvement in the election campaign.
“So he wasn’t speaking or tweeting out of love for the people of the state. All his tweets, all his activities were partisan. He wanted his uncle to win,” he added.
Ajayi said Nigeria’s democratic system allows individuals to express their views publicly, including through social media, but warned that similar conduct could have serious consequences in some other countries.
“It’s just that we are in a democratic society where there is freedom of speech. People are allowed to say whatever they want to say on social media,” he said.
“Davido can’t dare say or tweet all of those things in countries like Rwanda or Ethiopia. He will be picked up to come and provide evidence. You don’t make reckless claims that you don’t have evidence of. These things are capable of inciting the public into violence.”
Davido had been vocal on social media throughout the Osun election, particularly as voting ended and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, began collating the results.
The singer later deleted a post in which he appeared to distance himself and his uncle from support for any presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 election.
“No more supporting any presidential candidate @AAdeleke_01 make we Dey our Dey!!!” Davido had written in the deleted post addressed to Governor Adeleke.
He also reportedly deleted another post directed at President Tinubu, in which he wrote, “U no try @officialABAT.”
...s attracted attention because Governor Adeleke had publicly endorsed Tinubu’s bid for a second term in 2027, despite Davido’s apparent position on the matter.
The Osun election ended with Adeleke retaining the governorship after defeating the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji. Adeleke polled 511,067 votes against Oyebamiji’s 444,815, while the African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, came third with 17,180 votes.
Adeleke won in 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured 11. The election recorded 1,010,684 accredited voters from 2,339,544 registered voters, with 1,005,800 votes cast. INEC declared 985,097 votes valid and rejected 20,721 ballots.
Despite Davido’s position on social media, Adeleke maintained his support for Tinubu after being declared winner. In his acceptance speech, the governor praised the President for what he described as his role in ensuring a credible election and reaffirmed his endorsement of Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election.
“At this point, I must deeply appreciate Mr President, His Excellency, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his strong support for a free and fair election. Mr President is a son of Osun State, and I hereby reaffirm my earlier endorsement of him for a second term in the 2027 presidential election,” Adeleke said.
Adeleke also revealed that Tinubu contacted him after the election, while thanking the President for his intervention in matters involving the state government and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
“What else do I want? I’ve instructed my Attorney General to drop it. Mr President has done well; he called me. What more do I want?” Adeleke said.