Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma has responded to Afrobeats star David Adeleke, known as Davido, clarifying that he is not a registered voter in Osun State but insisting the singer remains his son.
The governor also distanced himself from remarks by Ambrose Nwogwugwu, who had dismissed Davido’s appeal for a peaceful Osun governorship election as “emotional blackmail.”
In a statement issued Thursday by his Chief Press Secretary and Special Adviser on Media, Oguwike Nwachuku, Uzodimma said he never authorised Nwogwugwu or anyone else to respond to the singer on his behalf.
Davido had appealed to Uzodimma, whom he called his “daddy from Imo State,” urging him to use his influence to ensure Osun residents could freely choose their preferred candidate in the August 15 governorship election. The singer’s wife, Chioma, is from Imo State. Davido said the appeal followed rumours of possible interference in the poll, but stressed he was not presenting the claims as fact.
“Davido Remains My Son”
Responding, Uzodimma said his presence in Osun was tied strictly to his duties as an APC leader — not to any personal interest in the election’s outcome.
The governor chairs the Progressive Governors’ Forum and the APC Osun State Governorship Campaign Council. He said his involvement was aimed at mobilising support for the APC candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, and stressed he would not be casting a vote in the election.
“Davido remains his son,” the statement read, adding that Uzodimma’s participation in the campaign was “solely because he is a committed member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and not one of the voters in the state’s governorship election.”
The governor argued it was normal in a democracy for political leaders to campaign in states outside their own on behalf of their party’s candidates.
Uzodimma rejected Nwogwugwu’s characterisation of Davido’s appeal, saying the remarks did not reflect his position or that of the APC campaign council. Nwogwugwu had urged the singer to direct his message instead to Osun voters, who would decide the political fate of his uncle, Governor Ademola Adeleke.
According to the statement, Nwogwugwu spoke in a personal capacity and was not authorised to represent the governor. Uzodimma urged Davido, Osun residents and the public to disregard the comments.
The clarification, the statement said, became necessary after attempts by some individuals to present Nwogwugwu’s remarks as Uzodimma’s official response to the singer.
Uzodimma reaffirmed the APC’s commitment to a peaceful, credible, free and fair election, adding that there was nothing undemocratic about appealing to Osun residents to support the party’s candidate.
He said his respect for Davido and the people of Osun remained intact, and that his role would stay within the normal boundaries of democratic political engagement — supporting his party’s candidate and monitoring the election on APC’s behalf.
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