A war of words between Afrobeats superstar Davido and Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo has spilled into the open, adding a fresh celebrity dimension to the already heated campaign ahead of Osun State’s August 15 governorship election.
The friction traces back to Thursday, August 6, when Governor Okpebholo took the stage at an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Osun, campaigning for the party’s governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, popularly known as “Ambo.”
Addressing supporters, Okpebholo criticised Osun Governor Ademola Adeleke’s leadership style while urging residents not to vote for him, mocking Adeleke over his habit of dancing at official functions.
According to remarks credited to the Edo governor, “Before somebody signs paper, he will dance. Are you not tired? For four years, this man has been dancing. Before he takes breakfast, before he…” a jibe framed as evidence that Adeleke prioritizes spectacle over governance.
Okpebholo also urged voters to reject any money offered by politicians while still refusing to vote for them, telling the crowd to take the cash but withhold their votes.
The governor reportedly went further, tying Adeleke to former Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki and urging voters to reject both men, arguing that Obaseki’s associates should be kept out of power just as Edo residents had removed Obaseki himself.
Davido, who was in Osun State for the closing stretch of his uncle’s re-election campaign, opted against a direct war of words.
Instead, in the early hours of Friday morning, the singer took to his Instagram Stories to hit back in characteristically unconventional fashion not by defending Adeleke’s dancing, but by turning the spotlight on Okpebholo’s own academic history.
He shared what was reported to be the Edo governor’s WAEC result, which purportedly showed the governor passing only one subject out of seven. Other outlets described the leaked document as showing multiple poor grades, including D7s and E8s.
Davido did not attach any caption to the post, but many social media users quickly interpreted the move as a direct clapback at Okpebholo’s remarks about Adeleke. Though wordless, the post “spoke volumes,” as one online commentator put it, drawing a wave of reactions.
Reactions ranged from users praising Davido’s response to others turning the exchange into a fresh online debate, with one commenter writing “Aura for aura” and another asking “Why won’t you love Davido?”
This is not Davido’s first public spat with a sitting governor over his uncle’s re-election bid. The singer previously clashed with Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma and has consistently defended Adeleke against criticism from political opponents throughout the campaign season. He has also sparred publicly with former presidential aide Bashir Ahmad over the Osun race.
The exchange has further intensified the political atmosphere surrounding the Osun governorship election, with Davido increasingly leaning on his massive social media following to campaign for his uncle and respond to critics in real time. Note: the authenticity of the WAEC document shared by Davido has not been independently verified by any electoral or examination body, and Okpebholo’s camp has not issued a formal response as of this writing.
With just over a week to go before Osun heads to the polls, the episode underscores how celebrity influence, family loyalty, and social media theatrics have become as central to Nigerian gubernatorial contests as the campaign issues themselves.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
What began as Governor Okpebholo’s jab at Adeleke’s dancing habit escalated into Davido publicly circulating an unverified WAEC result to question the Edo governor’s academic credentials, turning a policy critique into a personal credibility battle.
Neither side addressed the substance of governance in Osun; instead, the exchange reflects how celebrity influence and personal mudslinging are increasingly overshadowing policy debate in Nigeria’s high-stakes elections, with the authenticity of Davido’s claim still unconfirmed.
